[■■__ 


Other1  Boo^  bij  John  Fletcher  Hu^fc,  D.D,,  LLD. 


Bibliotheca  Theologica, 0 

Christian  Union  Necessary  for  Religious  Progress,  .         .  10 

Martyrs  of  the  Tract  Cause, 45 

Outlines  of  Bible  History.     Net, 40 

Outlines  of  Church  History.     Net, 40 


BOOKS  EDITED  BY  JOHN  F.  HURST,  D.D.,  LED..  AND  GEORGE  R. 
CROOKS.  D.D.,  LL.D. 

Library  of  Biblical  and  Theological  Literature. 

Vol.    I.     Introduction  to  the  Study  of  the  Holy  Scriptures. 

By  Henry  M.  Harman,  D.D.,       .  .         .         4  00 

"     II.     Biblical  Hermeneutics.     By  Milton  S    Terry,  D.D. , 

LL.D.,  3  00 

"  III.     Theological  Encyclopedia  Methodology.    By  Crooks 

and  Hurst,         .  3  CO 

"    IV.     Christian  Archaeology.     By  Chas.  \V.  Bennett,  D.D. ,    3  50 
"     V.     Systematic   Theology.      Vol.    1.      By    John   Miley, 

D.D.,  LL.D., 3  00 

'•'   VI.     Systematic   Theology.      Vol.    2.      By   John   Miley, 

D.D.,  LL.D.     In  Press. 


HISTORY 


RATIONALISM 


EMBRACING 


A  SURVEY  OF  THE  PRESENT  STATE  OF 
PROTESTANT  THEOLOGY 


By  IOHN  FLETCHER  HURST,  D.D.,   LL.D. 


WITH    APPENDIX    OF    LITERATURE 


NEW   YORK  :    EATON  &   MAINS 
CINCINNATI  :  CURTS  &  JENNINGS 


Copyright,  1S65,  by 

CHARLES  SCRIBNER  &  CO., 

New  York. 


Copyright,  1893,  by  JOHN   F.   HURST. 


f4t 


The  Rationalists  are  like  the  spiders,  they  spin  all  <>ut  of  tlieir  ow 
Dowels.     But  give  me  a  philosopher  who,  like  the  bee,  hath  a  middle 
faculty,  gathering  from  abroad,  but  digesting  that  which  is  gathered  by 
its  own  virtue. — Lord  Bacon. 


The  Bible,  I  say  the  Bible  only,  is  the  religion  of  Protestants.  .  .  . 
There  is  no  safe  certaintie  but  of  Scripture  only,  for  any  considering  man 
to  build  upon.  This  therefore,  and  this  only  I  have  reason  to  beleeve ; 
this  I  will  professe ;  according  to  this  I  will  live,  and  for  this  I  will  not 
only  willingly,  but  even  gladly  lose  my  life,  though  I  should  be  sorry 
that  Christians  should  take  it  from  me.  Propose  me  anything  out  of  this 
book,  and  require  whether  I  believe  it  or  no,  and  secure  it  never  so  incom- 
prehensib  3  to  humane  reason,  I  will  subscribe  it  hand  and  heart,  as 
knowing  no  demonstration  can  be  stronger  than  this,  God  hath  said  so, 
therefore  it  is  true.  In  other  things  I  will  take  no  man's  libertie  of  judg- 
ment from  him;  neither  shall  any  man  take  mine  from  me.  I  will  think 
o  man  the  worse  man  nor  the  worse  Christian.  I  will  love  no  man  the 
lesse  for  differing  in  opinion  with  me.  And  what  measure  I  mete  to 
others  I  expect  from  them  againe.  I  am  fully  assured  that  God  does  not, 
and  therefore  that  men  ought  not  to  require  any  more  of  any  man.  than 
this:  to  believe  the  Scripture  to  be  God's  word,  to  endeavor  to  finde  the 
true  sense  of  it,  and  to  live  according  to  it. — Chii.llngworth. 


Are  those  enthusiasts  who  profess  to  follow  reason  ?     Yes,  undoubtedly, 
if  by  reason  they  mean  only  conceits      Therefore  such  persons  are  now 
commonly  called  ReaxonteU  or  Rationalists  to  distinguish  them  from  true 
soners  or  rational  inquirers. —  Waterland. 


CONTENTS. 


INTRODUCTION. 


Pjui 

Systematic  History  of  Infidelity,  .... 

2-3 

Best  Method  of  refuting  Rationalism, 

3-4 

Rationalism  not  an  unmixed  Evil, 

ir-'l 

Definitions  of  Rationalism  : 

Wegscheider,             .... 

8 

Staudlin,              ..... 

11 

Hahn,             ..... 

12 

Rose,       ...... 

13 

Bretsclmeider,           .... 

14 

McCaul,               ..... 

10 

Saintes,          ..... 

19 

Lecky,      ...... 

22 

Classes  of  Rationalists,             .... 

24-26 

Causes  of  the  success  of  Rationalism, 

20-83 

Four  Considerations  in  Reference  to  Rationalism,    . 

32-35 

CHAPTER    I. 

CONTROVERSIAL    PERIOD   SUCCEEDING    THE    REFORMATION. 


Causes  of  the  Controversial  Spirit, 

The  Controversies  described, 

George  Calixtus, 

Jacob  Boehme, 

John  Arndt,     . 

John  Gerhard, 

John  Valentine  Andrea, 


38 
39,40 
40-45 
46^9 
49-51 
51-53 
53-55 


CHAPTER    II. 

RELIGIOUS    CONDITION    OF   THE    PROTESTANT    CHURCH    AT    THJ! 
PEACE    OF    WESTPHALIA. 


Description  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War, 
Religious  Decline  of  the  Church, 


56-59 
59-61 


CONTENTS. 


Neglect  of  Children,  .... 

Defects  of  Theological  Literature, 

Low  State  of  Theological  Instruction, 

[inperfeet  Preaching  of  the  Time, 

Immorality  of  the  Clergy  and  Theological  Professors, 

Religious  Indifference  of  the  Upper  Classes,  . 


Page 

02-05 
66-08 

63,69 
09-73 
73  -77 
77-  8«i 


CHAPTER     III. 

PIETISM    AND    ITS    MISSION. 

Philosophy  of  the  Period, 

Improvement  dependent  on  Individuals, 

What  Pietism  proposed  to  do, 

Principles  of  Pietism, 

Philip  Jacob  Spener,  the  Founder  of  Pietism, 

University  of  Halle,     .... 

Augustus  Hermann  Francke, 

The  Orphan  House  at  Halle,  . 

Influence  of  the  University  of  Halle. 

Arnold  and  Thoraasius, 

New  Generation  of  Professors  in  Halle, 

Cause  of  the  Decline  of  Pietism, 


82 
84,85 
85-88 
88,89 
89-93 

93 
93-95 
95-97 
97,98 
98,  99 

99,  ion 

102 


CHAPTER     IV. 

THE    POPULAR    PHILOSOPHY    OP    WOLFF. — SKEPTICAL   TENDENCIES 
FROM   ABROAD. 


Leibnitz,  Founder  of  the  "Wolffian  Philosophy, 

Wolff  and  the  Popular  Philosophy,     . 

The  Scho  .1  of  Wolff. 

Tollner,  ..... 

English  Deism  in  Germany, 

English  Deism  in  France, 

Voltaire  and  Frederic  the  Great, 

Frederic's  Regret  at  Skepticism  in  Prussia,     . 


103,  104 
104-111 
111 
112 
113-117 
117,  118 
119-123 
123,  124 


CHAPTER    V. 

SEMLER    AND   THE    DESTRUCTIVE    SCHOOL. 1750-1810. 

Influence  of  Foreign  Skepticism  on  the  German  Churcli,  .       125,126 

Semler  and  the  Accommodation-Theory,        .  .  .  120-131 


CONTENTS. 


Semler's  Private  Life,        . 

Influence  of  Semler's  destructive  Critic  ism,    . 

Edelrnann,  . 

liahrdt,— his  Writings,  and  depraved  Character, 


Pao 

135-1 

137,  1 

138,  1  fjjj 
139-U 


OHAPTE R     V  1  . 

CONTRIBUTIONS    OF    LITERATURE    AND    PHILOSOPHY. 

Prevalence  of  Semler's  Opinions,        .... 
Mental  Activity  of  the  Times,      .... 
Adherents  to  the  Accommodation-Theory,.    • 
Literary  Agencies : 

Nicolai's  Universal  German  Library,     . 

Rationalistic  Spirit  in  Berlin, 

Wolfenbiittel  Fragments, 
Philosophical  Agencies  : 

Kant  and  his  System,  .... 

Service  rendered  t>y  Kant, 

Jacobi,  ...... 

Fichte,    ...... 

Schelling,       ...... 

Hegel,     ...... 

Grouping  of  the  Philosophical  Schools, 


144, 1  ■ 

1 
147.  1    • 

147,  1    - 
1 

140-1 

156-1 

1 
162,  1 

1 

1 
164,  1  i 
165-1 


CHAPTER     VII. 

THE    REIGN    OF    THE    WEIMAR    CIRCLE.  —  REVOLUTION    IN     EDUCA- 
TION    AND    II YM  NO  LOGY. 


Harmony  of  the  prevalent  philosophical  Systems, 
Karl  August  of  Weimar  and  his  literary  Circle. 
John  Gottfried  Herder,  .... 

Schiller,     ....... 

Goethe,  ...... 

Deleterious  Change  in  Education, 

Basedow,  and  his  Philanthropium, 

Campe  and  Salzmann,       ..... 

Rationalistic  Elementary  Books, 

Alteration  of  the  German  Hymns. 

Decline  of  Church  Music, 

Inability  of  Orthodox  Theologians  to  resist  Rationalism, 


1 
169-171 
171-1W 
179-182 

182,  1 

1 
184-191 
1 87,  1 
189-193 
I  94,  1 

195 
195,  196 


£11 


CONTEXTS. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

DOCTRINES    OF    RATIONALISM    IN    THE    DAY    OF    ITS    STRENGTH. 


De-olato  Condition  of  the  Church, 
Rationalism  without  a  Common  Systen 
Opinions  of  the  Rationalists  : 

Religion, 

Existence  of  God, 

Doctrine  of  Inspiration, 

Credibility  of  the  Scriptures, 

Fall  of  Man, 

Miracles, 

Prophecy, 

Person  of  Christ,    . 


Paoe 

197,  195 
198, 109 

l'Jf 

199,  21  >< 
200-2(12 

203-206 

200,  207 
207-211 
211-214 
214-218 


CHAPTER     IX. 

RENOVATION    INAUGURATED    BY    SCHLEIERMACHER. 

Protestant  Germany  at  the  Commencement  of  the  Nineteenth 

Century,      .......  220-222 

Fichte.  and  his  Popular  Appeal,          ....  222-224 

Schleiermacher,     .             .             .             .             .             .             .  224-229 

The  Romantic  School,              .....  230 

Ecclesiastical  Reconstruction  inaugurated  by  Frederic  William 

III %            .  230,231 

The  Union  of  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed  Churches,             .  231.  232 

Claus  Harms— his  95  Theses,       .....  232-236 


CHAPTER     X  . 

RELATIONS    OF    RATIONALISM    AND     SUPERNATURALISM. 1810-1835. 

The  Task  before  the  New  Church,      ....  237 

Rationalism  strengthened  by  Ruhr  and  Wegscheider.      .  .  238 

The  terms,  Rationalism  and  Sup<;maturalism,  .  .  239 

Tittmann,  ........  239,  240 

Tzschirner,        .......  240 

Schott,       ........  241 

Schleiennacher's  System  of  Doctrines,  .  .  .  241-244 

Effect  of  Schleiennacher's  Teaching,        ....  245,  246 

De  Wette,         .  .  ....  246-249 

Neander,    .......  249-253 

His  personal  Appearance,        .....  253-254 


CONTEXTS. 


XI 11 


CHAPTER    XI. 

THE   REACTION  PRODUCED  BY  STRAUSS'  LIFE  OF    JESUS. 1S35-1848. 


IIyper-cri;icism  of  the  Rationalists, 

Influence  of  Schleiermaeher  and  Hegel, 

The  threefold  Division  of  the  Hegelian  School,  . 

David  Frederic  Strauss,  and  his  Life  of  Jesus, 

tteplies  to  the  Lift  of  Jesus: 

Harless,  ..... 

Hoffman,        .  . 

Neander,  ..... 

Ullmann,        ...... 

Schweizer,  ..... 

Wilke, 

Sclialler,  ..... 

Dorner,  ...... 

Literature  occasioned  by  Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus, 

Strauss'  New  Life  of  Jesus  for  the  I'eojjle, 

The  Tubingen  School,  conducted  by  Ferdinand  Christian  Ban 

The  Influence  of  the  French  Revolution, 

Strauss'  System  of  Doctrine,    ..... 

Fcuerbach,  ...... 

The  Halle  Year-Books,  ..... 

The  "  Friends  of  Light,"  ... 

The  "  Free  Congregations,"'    .... 

Rationalistic  Leaders  of  the  Revolution  of  1S48, 

Their  Failure,  and  its  Cause,  .... 


255,  25G 

256,  257 

257,  258 
258-269 

271 

271 

272 

273 

273 

273 

273 

273, 274 

274,  275 

275-278 

278-280 

280,281 

2S1,282 

282 

282,  283 

283,  284 
284, 285 

285,  286 

286,  287 


CHAPTER     XII. 

THE    EVANGELICAL  SCIIOOL:    ITS  OPINIONS  AND   PRESKXT  PROSPECTS. 


The  Mediation  Theologians,  or  Evangelical  School,  groupec 

Ullmann,  .... 

Dorner,  .... 

Tholuck,  ..... 

Lange,  ..... 

Twesten,  ..... 

Nitzsch,  .... 

Rothe,      ...... 

Schenkel — his  recent  Adoption  of  Rationalism, 

Hengstenberg,     ..... 
Theological  Journals,  .... 

Improved  Theologies'  Instruction, 


288, 289 
289-292 
292-295 
295,  29e 

297 
297-299 
299-303 
303-305 
305-307 

307 
307-3 1 G 


xi  r 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

PRACTICAL    MOVEMENTS    INDICATING    NEW    LIFE. 

Charities  of  German  Protestantism,    .... 

Relation  of  Philanthropy  to  Religious  Life, 

John  Falk.       ....... 

Theodore  Fliedner,  ...... 

Evangelical  Church  Diet,         . 

Immanuel  Wichern,  ...... 

Louis  Harms,  ...... 

The  Gustavus  Adolphus  Union,  .... 


K»9B 


312 

316- 

318- 

324- 

329, 

330, 


311 
312 
319 
318 
323 
329 
330 
331 


CHAPTE R    X  I  V . 

HOLLAND  :  THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION  FEOM  THE  SYNOD  OF  DORT 
TO  THE  COMMENCEMENT  OF  THE  PRESENT  CENTURY. 


Former  Political  Influence  of  Holland,     . 
Rise  of  Rationalism  in  Holland, 
Influence  of  the  Synod  of  Doit,    . 
Corruption  of  Ethics,  .... 

Low  state  of  Homiletic  Literature, 
Cocceius,  ..... 

Vcetius,     ...... 

Controversy  between  the  Cocceians  and  Voetians, 
Favorable  Influence  of  the  Huguenot  Immigrants, 
Popular  Acquaintance  with  Theology, 
Bekker,     ...... 

Roell 

Van  Os,     ...... 

Influence  of  English  Deism,     . 
Influence  of  French  Skepticism,  . 
Napoleon  Bonaparte's  domination,     . 


332,  333 

333 

334 

335 

335,  336 

336-339 

339,  340 

340-343 

343,  344 

345,  340 

347,  348 

348,  34!  • 
349 

350-353 

353,  354 

354,  355 


CHAPTER    XV, 


UOI  1  AND  CONTINUED!  THE  NEW  THEOLOGICAL  SCHOOLS,  AND  THfc 
GREAT  CONTROVERSY  NOW  PENDING  BETWEEN  ORTHODOX  T 
AND    RATIONALISM. 


The  Political  Subjugation  of  Holland, 

Inactivity  of  Orthodoxy, 

Rupture  produced  by  the  New  Hymn-Book, 


356 
356,  357 
357, 35S 


CONTENTS. 


XV 


The  Revival  and  the  Secession : 

Bilderdyk,   Da  Oosta,  Capadose,  Groen   Van   Priiis 
terer, 

De  Cock,  the  Leader  of  the  Secession 

Failure  of  the  Secession, 
'  ^e  Groningen  School : 

Its  Characteristic, 

Hofstede  de  Groot,  and  Pareau, 

Doctrines  of  the  Groningens,     . 
The  School  of  Leyden : 

Scholten, 
The  School  of  Empirical-Modern  Theology 

Opzoomer,     . 

Pierson, 

Doctrines  of  this  School, 
The  Ethical  Irenical  School : 

Chantepie  de  la  Saussaye,     . 

Van  Oosterzee,  . 
The  Present  Crisis  and  its  Causes, 
Increase  of  Evangelizing  Agencies, 


359-3G1 

362, 363 

363,  364 

364 

364 

365,  366 

366,  367 
367 

368-371 

371 
371-374 
374, 375 

375 
375-377 
377-379 
381-383 
383-385 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

FRANCE  :    RATIONALISM   IN   THE    PROTESTANT   CHURCH- 
CRITICAL    SCHOOL. 


Present  Activity  of  Religious  Thought  in  France, 

386,  387 

Coldness  of  Orthodoxy  at  the  Commencement  <>f  the  Nineteenth 

Century,             ...                         . 

387,  388 

Influence  of  Wesleyan  Missionaries,        .... 

388,  389 

Oartesianism  and  the  Positive  Philosophy,     . 

390 

Light  French  Literature,     ...... 

391 

The  Critical  School  of  Theology :       . 

391  394 

RSville,  ....... 

394-3W 

Scherer,         ...... 

396-400 

Larroqne,            ..... 

400 

Rougemont,     ..... 

400.  401 

Colani,     ..,..,. 

401,  402 

Pecaut,            ...... 

402,  403 

Grotz,      ....... 

403 

Renan,  and  his  Life  of  Jesus, 

403-406 

A.  Coquerel,  jr ,     . 

406-409 

Influence  of  French  Skepticism  upon  tho  Young. 

409,  410 

XVI 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

FRANCE   CONTINUED  *    EVANGELICAL  THEOLOGY    OPPOSING    RA- 
TIONALISM. 


Agencies  Opposing  Rationalism,     . 

I>e  Pressense,     .  .  . 

Guizot,        ...... 

Success  of  the  Evangelical  School, 
Improvement  of  the  French  Protestant  Church. 
Charitable  and  Evangelizing  Societies, 


Page 

411 

411-416 
416-419 
419-421 

422,  428 

423,  424 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

SWITZERLAND  :   ORTHODOXY   IN   GENEVA,    AND  THE    NEW   SPECU- 
LATIVE RATIONALISM  IN  ZURICH. 


Prostration  of  the  Swiss  Church  at  the  Commencement  of 

Nineteenth  Century, 
Neglect  of  Theological  Instruction, 
The  Theological  Academy  in  Geneva, 
The  Evangelical  Dissenting  Church, 
Gaussen,  ..... 

Vinet,        ..... 
Present  Religious  Condition  of  Geneva, 
Lectures  in  the  Genevan  Theological  Academy, 
Religious  Declension  of  Zurich, 
Zurich  the  Centre  of  Swiss  Rationalism  : 
The  Speculative  Rationalism : 

The  Holy  Scriptures, 

Christ,     .... 

Sin, 

Faith,      .... 
German  Switzerland  influenced  by  German  Theology, 


the 


425,  420 

. 

.   426, 427 

428 

. 

428 

428,  429 

. 

429 

429,  430 

. 

.   431, 432 

432 

• 

.   433-435 

435 

. 

.   435-437 

438 

. 

.   438, 439 

y» 

439 

CHAPTER    XIX. 

England:  the  soil  prepared  for  the  introduction  of 
rationalism. 


English  Deism  and  German  Rationalism  Contrasted, 
Literature  of  England  in  the  Eighteenth  Century,  . 
The  Writers  of  that  Period,        .  . 

Influence  of  the  French  Spirit, 
Bolingbroke,  ..... 


44(> 

440,441 

441 

441,  442 

442.  443 


CONTENTS. 


XVU 


Hume.    . 

Gibbon,     .... 
The  moral  Prostration  of  the  Church, 
Influence  of  the  Wesley  an  Movement, 


Page 

444-447 
447,447 
4-18-450 
450-452 


CHAPTER    XX. 

ENGLAND   CONTINUED:   PHILOSOPHICAL   AND    LITERARY   RATIONAL- 
ISM.  COLERIDGE    AND  CARLYLE. 

Compensations  of  History,      .....  453 

Rise  of  a  Disposition  in  England  to  consult  German  Theology 

and  Philosophy.         ......  453, 454 

Philosophical  Rationalism : 

Samuel  Taylor  Coleridge,     ....  455-462 

Julius  Charles  Hare,      .....  462-4G5 

F.D.Maurice,  .....  465-408 

Charles  Kingsley,  .....  468-471 

Literary  Rationalism : 

Influence  of  Philosophy  on  Literature,        .  .  472 

Thomas  Carlyle,  .....  473-477 

The  Westminster  Review,      ....  477-480 

Necessity  of  active  Protestantism,  ....  480 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

ENGLAND   CONTINUED:     CRITICAL   RATIONALISM — JOWETT,  THE 
ESSAYS   AND    REVIEWS,    AND   COLENSO. 

Belation  of  the  Bible  to  Christianity,             .            .            .  481 

Critical  Rationalism : 

Professor  Jowett,            .....  481 

The  "Essays  and  Reviews,"            .            .            .  482  497 

Judicial  Proceedings  against  the  "Writers  of  that  Work,  497-  499 

Criticism  of  Bishop  Colenso,             .             .             .  499-503 

Judicial  Proceedings  against  Colenso,    .            .            .  503-BO5 


CHAPTER    XXII. 

ENGLAND   CONTINUED:    SURVEY  OF   CHURCH    PARTIES. 

Onity  of  the  Church  of  England, 

The  Evangelical  and  Sacramentalist  Parties, 


507 
507 


XVIH 


CONTENTS. 


The  Low  Church  : 

Cambridge  University, 

Activity  of  the  Founders  of  the  Low  Church, 

Missionary  Zeal,        .... 

Parties  in  the  Low  Church, 
The  High  Church : 

Rise  of  the  Tractarian  Movement,    . 

Doctrines  of  the  High  Church, 

Service  rendered  by  the  High  Church, 

John  H.  Newman, 

Francis  William  Newman,    . 
The  First  Broad  Church  : 

Indefiniteness  of  Creed, 

Thomas  Arnold,        .... 

Arthur  P.  Stanley,         .... 

Doctrines  of  the  First  Broad  Church, 
The  Second  Broad  Church  : 

Difference    between    the   First    and     Second    Broad 
Churches,    ...... 

Classification  of  Church  Parties,        - 

Skepticism  in  various  Sects,  .... 


508 
508,  509 
509,510 

510 

511,513 

512-515 

515 

516,517 

517-519 

519,520 
520-523 
523-529 
529,  530 


530,  531 

531,  532 

532,  533 


CHAPTER    XXIII. 


THE  UNITED  STATES  :  THE  UNITARIAN  CHURCH. — THE  UNIVERSALISTS 

Novelty  in  American  History, 

Separation  of  Church  and  State, 

Relations  between  the  Old  World  and  the  United  States, 

The  Unitarian  Church : 

The  Venerable  Stoddard, 

Jonathan  Edwards,    . 

The  Half-Way  Covenant, 

James  Freeman, 

Early  Unitarian  Publications,     . 

Unitarianism  in  Harvard  University, 

Andover  Theological  Seminary, 

Controversy  between  Channing  and  W 

William  Ellery  Channing, 

The  Unitarian  Creed, 

The  Christian  Examiner, 

The  Young  Men's  Christian  Union, 

The  Unitarian  National  Convention, 

Present  state  of  the  Unitarian  Church, 


.'£1.            1X1  Hi       L    ^* 

531 

. 

.       534-536 

3d  States,     . 

536,  537 

.       537, 538 

. 

538 

538 

538,  539 

.       539,  540 

. 

540 

.       540,541 

orcester. 

511 

.       541-544 

. 

544-553 

553 

. 

553-558 

.       558-560 

56C 

CONTENTS. 


XLS 


Universalism : 

Rise  iu  America, 

Doctrines   of    Universalism, 

Present  state  of  Universalism, 


560, 561 
561,562 
562,  563 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

THE    UNITED   STATES    CONTINUED:    THEODORE    PARKER   AND    HIS 

SCHOOL. 

Early  Attachment  of  the  Unitarians  to  the  Doctrine  of  Miracles,  564 

Theodore  Parker : 

His  Personal  History,  ....  564, 565 

His  Course  toward  Orthodoxy,  .  .         .   .  566 

His   Opinions,  .....  566-571 

Influence  of  American  Skepticism,  ...  .  571,  572 

Frothingham's  juvenile  Work,  ....  572, 573 

"Liberal  Christianity,"    ......  573-575 

Duty  of  the  American  Church,  .  .  .  .  575, 57fi 

CHAPTER    XXV. 

INDIRECT    SERVICE    OF   SKEPTICISM — PRESENT    OUTLOOK. 

Great  Success  the  Result  of  strong  Opposition,  .  .  .  577-579 

Biblical  Study  indirectly  benefited  by  the  Attacks  of  Rationalism,  580,  581 

Improvement  of  Church  History,       ....  581-583 

Estimate  of  the  Life  of  Christ,     .....  583-586 
The  Evangelical  Church : 

Necessity  of  an  impartial  View  of  Science,  .  586,  587 

The  proper  Way  to  combat  Skepticism,  .  .  587,  588 

Unity  a  Requisite  of  Success,  .  .  588, 589 


APPENDIX. 

Literature  of  Rationalism : 

Germany,  Holland,  Switzerland, 
Rationalistic  Periodicals  in  Germany, 
France,   .... 
Rationalistic  Periodicals  in  France, 
Great  Britain  and  the  United  States, 

Uterature  of  Unitarianism  and  Universalism  : 
Unitarian  Periodicals,     . 
Universaliet  "Periodicals, 

Index,       ..... 


690-595 

595 

595-598 

598 

599-606 

606-609 

609 

609-610 

611-62? 


HISTORY  OF  RATIONALISM. 


INTRODUCTION. 

RATIONALISM   DEFINED— ITS   CHARACTER  AS  A  SKEPTICAL 
DEVELOPMENT. 

Rationalism  is  the  most  recent,  hut  not  the  least 
violent  and  insidious,  of  all  the  developments  jof  skep- 
ticism. We  purpose  to  show  its  historical  position,  and 
to  present,  as  faithfully  as  possible,  its  antagonism  to 
evangelical  Christianity.  The  guardians  of  the  interests 
of  the  church  cannot  excuse  themselves  from  effort 
toward  the  eradication  of  this  error  by  saying  that  it 
is  one  which  will  soon  decay  by  the  force  of  its  natural 
autumn.  Posterity  will  not  hesitate  to  charge  us  with 
gross  negligence  if  we  fail  to  appreciate  the  magnitude 
of  Rationalism,  and  only  deal  with  it  as  the  growth  of 
a  day.  We  have  half  conquered  an  enemy  when  we 
have  gained  a  full  knowledge  of  his  strength. 

There  was  a  time  when  Rationalism  was  a  theme 
of  interest  to  the  Protestant  church  of  Germany  alone. 
But  that  day  is  now  past.  Having  well  nigh  run  its 
race  in  the  land  of  Luther,  it  has  crossed  the  Rhine 
into  France  and  the  Netherlands,  invaded  England,  and 


2  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

now  threatens  trie  integrity  of  the  domain  of  Anglo- 
Saxon  theology.  Thus  it  has  assumed  an  importance 
which  should  not  be  overlooked  by  British  and  Ameri- 
can thinkers  who  love  those  dearly-bought  treasures 
of  truth  that  they  have  received  as  a  sacred  legacy  from 
the  martyrs  and  reformers  of  the  English  church.  The 
recent  writings  of  the  exegetical  Rationalists  of  Eng- 
land are  sufficient  to  induce  us  to  gather  up  our  armor 
and  adjust  it  for  immediate  defence.  Delay  will  entail 
evil.  The  reason  why  skepticism  has  wrought  such 
fearful  ravages  at  various  stages  during  the  career  of 
the  church  has  been  the  tardiness  of  the  church  in 
watching  the  sure  and  steady  approach,  and  then  in 
underrating  the  real  strength  of  her  adversary.  The 
present  History  will  be  written  for  the  specific  purpose 
of  awakening  an  interest  in  the  danger  that  now  threat- 
ens us.  We  have  no  ambition  to  deal  with  the  past, 
further  than  to  enable  it  to  minister  to  the  immediate 
demands  of  the  present.  We  all  belong  to  this  genera- 
tion ;  it  calls  for  our  energies ;  it  has  its  great  wants ; 
and  we  shall  be  held  justly  responsible  if  we  neglect 
to  contribute  our  share  toward  the  progress  of  our  con- 
temporaries. 

The  three  principles  which  have  influenced  us  to 
undertake  a  discussion  of  the  present  theme — and  of 
the  truth  of  which  we  are  profoundly  convinced — are 
the  following : 

I.  That  .Infidelity  presents  a  systematic  and 
harmonious  History.  Our  customary  view  of  eiTor  is. 
that  its  history  is  disjointed,  rendered  so  by  the  ardent, 
but  unsteady,  labors  of  the  doubters  of  all  periods  since 
the  origin  of  Christianity.  We  have  ignored  the  his- 
torical movement  of  skepticism.  Even  the  storms  have 
their  mysterious  laws.     The  work  of  Satan  is   never 


INTRODUCTION.  O 

planless.  He  adapts  his  measures  to  the  new  dangers 
that  arise  to  threaten  his  dominion.  The  analogy  be- 
tween the  Eationalism  of  to-day  and  the  infidelity  of 
past  ages  is  so  striking  that  we  can  with  difficulty  rec- 
ognize the  interval  of  centuries.  We  see  the  new  faces 
but  the  foes  are  old.  Rationalism  has  repeatedly  varied 
its  method  of  attack  ;  but  if  we  follow  the  marches  of 
its  whole  campaign  we  shall  find  that  the  enemy  which 
stands  at  our  fortress-gate  with  the  Essays  and  Re- 
views and  Notes  on  Pentateuch  and  Joshua  in  hand,  is 
the  same  one  that  assailed  Protestant  Germany  with  the 
Accommodation-theory  and  the  Wolfenbiittel  Fragments. 
II.  A  History  of  a  mischievous  Tendency  is  the 
very  best  Method  for  its  Refutation  and  Extir- 
pation. We  can  learn  the  full  character  of  the  good  or 
evil  of  any  abstract  principle  only  by  seeing  its  practical 
workings.  The  tree  is  known  by  its  fruits.  Rational- 
ism may  be  of  evil  character,  but  we  must  see  the  re- 
sults it  has  produced, — the  great  overthrow  of  faith  it 
has  effected,  and  its  influence  upon  the  pulpit  and  press 
of  the  countries  invaded  by  it,  before  we  can  compre- 
hend the  vastness  of  our  danger.  An  enumeration  of 
the  evil  doings  of  a  public  enemy  is  the  best  plan  to 
forestall  his  future  misdeeds.  We  are  not  to  judge 
Rationalism  by  its  professions.  The  question  is  not, 
What  does  it  wish  \  At  what  does  it  aim  ?  or,  What  is 
its  creed  ?  But  the  true  way  to  measure,  understand 
and  judge  it,  is  by  answering  the  inquiry,  What  has  it 
done  ?  Its  work  must  determine  its  character.  This 
work  has  been  most  injurious  to  the  faith  and  life  of 
the  church,  and  its  deeds  must  therefore  be  its  con- 
demnation. There  are  those  who  say,  "  Tell  us  nothing 
about  skepticism ;  we  know  too  much  about  it  already." 
Would  it  be  a  prudent  request,  if,  before  penetrating 


HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 


the  jungles  of  Asia,  we  should  say,  "  Tell  us  nothing  of 
the  habits  of  the  lion  "  ;  or,  before  visiting  a  malarious 
region  of  Africa,  we  should  beg  of  the  physician  not  to 
inform  us  of  the  prevalent  fever  and  its  appropriate 
remedy  ?  Forewarned  is  forearmed.  We  are  sur- 
rounded by  Rationalism  in  many  phases ;  it  comes  to 
us  in  the  periodical  and  the  closely-printed  volume. 
Even  children  are  reading  it  in  some  shape  or  other. 
Shall  we  know  its  danger ;  then  we  must  know  its 
deeds. 

III.  Of  Rationalism  it  may  be  affirmed,  as  of  all 
the  Phases  of  Infidelity,  that  it  is  not  in  its  Results 
an  unmixed  evil,  since  god  overrules  its  work  for 
the  Purification  and  Progress  of  his  Church.  A 
nation  is  never  so  pure  as  when  emerging  from  the 
sevenfold-heated  furnace.  It  was  not  before  Manasseh 
was  caught  among  thorns,  bound  with  fetters,  and  car- 
ried to  Babylon,  that  he  "  besought  the  Lord  his  God, 
and  humbled  himself  greatly  before  the  God  of  his 
fathers ; "  nor  was  it  before  this  humiliation  that  the 
Lord  "  brought  him  again  to  Jerusalem  into  his  king- 
dom." The  whole  history  of  religious  error  shows  that 
the  church  is  cold,  formal,  and  controversial  before  the 
visitation  of  skepticism.  When  every  power  is  in  full 
exercise,  infidelity  stands  aloof.  God  has  so  provided 
for  his  people  that  he  has  even  caused  the  delusion  by 
which  they  have  suffered  to  contribute  great  benefits  but 
little  anticipated  by 'the  deluded  or  the  deluders  them- 
selves. The  intellectual  labors  of  the  German  Ration- 
alists have  already  shed  an  incalculable  degree  of  light 
on  the  sacred  books,  and  upon  almost  every  branch  of 
theology.  But  thus  has  God  ever  caused  the  wrath  of 
man  to  praise  him. 

Takino-  this  view  of  the  indirect  benefits  resulting 


INTRODUCTION.  5 

from  skepticism,  we  cannot  lament,  without  an  admix 
ture  of  solace,  that  the  path  of  Truth  has  always  been 
rough.  The  Master,  who  declared  himself  "  The  Truth," 
premonished  us  by  his  own  life  that  his  doctrines  were 
not  destined  to  pervade  the  mind  and  heart  of  our  race 
without  encountering  violent  blows,  and  passing 
through  whole  winters  of  frost  and  stonn.  Many 
things  attending  the  origin  and  planting  of  Christianity 
gave  omen  of  antagonism  to  its  claims  in  coming  gener- 
ations. Nor  could  it  be  expected  that  the  un sanctified 
reason  of  man  would  accept  as  the  only  worthy  guide 
of  faith  and  life  what  Judaism,  Paganism,  and  Phi- 
losophy had  long  since  decidedly  rejected.  But  the 
spirit  of  Christianity  is  so  totally  at  variance  with  that 
of  the  world  that  it  is  vain  to  expect  harmony  between 
them.  Truth,  however,  will  not  suffer  on  that  account ; 
and  when  the  issues  appear  it  will  shine  all  the  brighter 
for  the  fires  through  which  it  has  passed.  The  country 
where  Rationalism  has  exerted  its  first  and  chief  influ- 
ence is  Germany,  than  which  no  nation  of  modern  times 
has  been  more  prospered  or  passed  through  deeper 
affliction.  At  one  time  she  was  the  leader  of  religious 
liberty  and  truth,  not  only  in  Europe,  but  throughout 
the  world.  She  was  thirty  years  fighting  the  battles 
of  Protestantism,  but  the  end  of  the  long  conflict  found 
her  victorious.  Since  that  day,  however,  she  has  lost 
her  prestige  of  adherence  to  evangelical  Christianity ; 
and  her  representative  theologians  and  thinkers  have 
distorted  the  Bible  which  she  was  the  very  first  tc 
uuseal.  We  rejoice  that  her  condition  is  more  hope- 
ful to-day  than  it  was  twenty-five  years  ago ;  but  re- 
covery is  not  easy  from  a  century-night  of  cold,  re- 
pulsive Rationalism.  As  a  large  number  of  those 
stupendous    battles    that   have   decided  the   political 


6  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

and  territorial  condition  of  Europe  have  been  fought 
on  the  narrow  soil  of  Belgium,  so  has  Germany  been 
for  ages  the  contested  field  on  which  were  deter- 
mined the  great  doctrinal  and  ecclesiastical  questions 
of  the  European  continent  and  of  the  world.  Happily, 
the  result  has  generally  been  favorable ;  and  let  no 
friend  of  evangelical  truth  fear  that  Rationalism  will 
not  meet  its  merited  fate. 

We  must  not  imagine  that,  because  the  term  Ra- 
tionalism has  been  frequently  employed  within  the  last 
few  years,  it  is  of  very  recent  origin  either  as  a  word 
or  skeptical  type.  The  Aristotelian  Humanists  of 
Helmstedt  were  called  nationalists  in  the  beginning 
of  the  seventeenth  century,  and  Comenius  applied  the 
same  epithet  to  the  Socinians  in  1688.1  It  was  a  com- 
mon word  in  England  two  hundred  years  ago.  Nor 
was  it  imported  into  the  English  language  from  the 
German,  either  in  a  theological  or  a  philosophical  sense. 
There  was  a  sect  of  Rationalists,  in  the  time  of  the  Com- 
monwealth, who  called  themselves  such  exactly  on  the 
same  grounds  as  their  successors  have  done  in  recent 
years.  Some  one  writing  the  news  from  London  under 
date  of  October  14,  1646,  says :  "  There  is  a  new  sect 
sprung  up  among  them  [the  Presbyterians  and  Inde- 
pendents], and  these  are  the  nationalists,  and  what 
their  reason  dictates  them  in  church  or  state  stands  fo? 
good  until  they  be  convinced  with  better." 2  But  Ration- 
alists, in  fact  if  not  in  name,  existed  on  the  Continent 
long  anterior  to  this  date.  The  Anti-Trinitarians,  and 
Bodin,  and  Pucci  were  rigid  disciples  of  Reason  ;  and 
their  tenets  harmonize  with  those  of  a  later  day.3 

1  Tholnck,  Herzog's  Real-Encyclopcedie.     Art.  Rationalismm. 

"  Trench,  Study  of  Words,  p.  147. 

'  As  a  fair  specimen  of  the  extent  to  which  philological  criticism  is  often 


INTRODUCTION.  7 

In  order  to  arrive  at  a  proper  definition  oi  Rational- 
ism we  should  consult  those  authors  who  have  given 
no  little  attention  to  this  department  of  theological  in- 
quiry. Nor  would  we  be  impartial  if  we  adduced  the 
language  of  one  class  to  the  exclusion  of  the  other.  We 
shall  hear  alike  from  the  friends  and  adversaries  of  the 
whole  movement,  and  endeavor  to  draw  a  proper  con* 
elusion  from  their  united  testimony.  It  was  Selden's 
advice  to  the  students  of  ecclesiastical  history,  "  to 
study  the  exaggerated  statements  of  Baronius  on  the 
one  side,  and  of  the  Magdeburg  Centuriators  on  the 
other,  and  be  their  own  judges."  Fortunately  enough 
for  a  proper  understanding  of  Rationalism,  there  is  no 
such  diversity  of  statement  presented  by  our  authori- 


carried  by  some  of  our  German  friends,  when  advocating  a  doubtful  cause, 
we  quote  a  paragraph  in  point  from  Dr.  Riickert's  work,  Der  Rationalis 
mus,  one  of  the  latest  and  feeblest  apologies  for  neological  thought : 

"  What  is  Rationalism?  We  must  try  to  get  the  meaning  from  the  term 
itself.  And.  what  sort  of  a  term  is  it  ?  Barbarous  enough  !  Its  root  is 
ratio,  but  it  is  directly  from  rationalis  that  the  word  in  question  is  derived. 
Now  this  word  is  good  enough  in  itself,  for  it  signifies  what  is  conform- 
able to  reason,  that  which  possesses  the  attributes  and  methods  of  reason. 
Man  is  a  rational  animal,  and  it  is  his  rationality  that  distinguishes  hint 
from  all  other  animals.  So  much  for  this  part  of  the  word  Rationalism. 
Now  for  the  barbarous  part  of  it,  the  -ism.  This  termination  belongs  to 
another  language,  the  Greek  -to-por,  and  is  derived  from  a  verbal  ending 
which  cannot  be  expressed  in  Latin,  namely — i£inv.  Now  if  we  examine 
certain  intransitive  verbs,  such  as  firj8i(uv,  XaKwviCfiv,  pwfiaifciv,  amKi^eiu, 
we  shall  find  their  common  peculiarity  is  that  the  persons  meant  are  not 
the  real  persons  which  the  words  seem  to  signify,  but  only  act  in  their  ca- 
pacity. Not  a  real  Mede  fin^l^i ;  no  true  Spartan  XaKwvige t ;  and  so  of 
all  the  rest.  But  those  Greeks  who  would  rather  belong  to  the  Medes  than 
be  freemen,  act  like  Medes,  would  prefer  to  be  under  Median  rule — fir)8i- 
[ov<tiv.  This  -urfxos  is  a  termination  from  this  class  of  verbs,  and  is  employ- 
ed in  reproach  and  not  in  praise.  Hence  Rationalist  is  a  term  of  contempt, 
and  means  not  one  who  is  really  reasonable,  but  would  like  to  pass  for  such." 
Of  course  the  Doctor  concludes  that  the  word  is  a  most  flagrant  and  un- 
righteous misnomer ;  but  we  accept  his  philology  and  return  him  our 
thanks  for  his  etymological  study. 


8  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

ties.     On  the  contrary,  we  shall  perceive  an  unexpected 
and  gratifying  harmony. 

In  Wegseheider's  Institutiones  Dogmattcce,  a  work 
which  for  nearly  half  a  century  has  stood  as  an  ac- 
knowledged and  highly  respected  authority  on  the  &ys 
tematic  theology  of  the  Rationalists,  we  read  langmge 
to  this  effect :  "  Since  that  doctrine  (of  supernaturalism) 
is  encumbered  with  various  difficulties,  every  day  made 
more  manifest  by  the  advances  of  learning,  especially 
historical,  physical,  and  philosophical,  there  have  been 
amongst  more  recent  theologians  and  philosophers  not 
a  few  who,  in  various  ways,  departing  from  it,  thought 
it  right  to  admit,  even  in  the  investigation  and  explana- 
tion of  divine  things,  not  only  that  formal  use  of  human 
reason  which  regards  only  the  method  of  expounding 
dogmas,  but  also  the  material  use,  by  which  the  subject- 
matter  of  the  particular  doctrines  is  submitted  to  inquiry. 

"  Thus  arose  that  of  which  the  generic  name  is 
Rationalism,  or  that  law  or  rule  of  thinking,  intimately 
united  with  the  cultivation  of  talent  and  mind,  by 
which  we  think  that  as  well  in  examining  and  judging 
of  all  things  presented  to  us  in  life  and  the  range  of 
universal  learning,  as  in  those  matters  of  most  grave 
importance  which  relate  to  religion  and  morals,  we  must 
follow  strenuously  the  norm  of  reason  rightly  applied, 
as  of  the  highest  faculty  of  the  mind ;  which  law  of 
thinking  and  perceiving,  if  it  be  applied  to  prove  any 
positive  religion  (theological  Rationalism)  lays  it  down 
as  an  axiom  that  religion  is  revealed  to  men  in  no  other 
manner  than  that  which  is  agreeable  both  to  the  nature 
of  things  and  to  reason,  as  the  witness  and  interpreter 
of  divine  providence ;  and  teaches  that  the  subject- 
matter  of  every  supposed  supernatural  revelation,  is  to 
be  examined  and  judged  according  to  the  ideas  regard 


INTRODUCTION.  9 

ing  religion  and  morality,  which  we  have  formed  in  the 
mind  by  the  help  of  reason.  .  .  .  Whosoevei,  there* 
fore,  despising  that  supremacy  of  human  reason,  main- 
tains that  the  authority  of  a  revelation,  said  to  have 
been  communicated  to  certain  men  in  a  supernatural 
manner,  is  such  that  it  must  be  obeyed  by  all  means, 
without  any  doubt, — that  man  takes  away  and  over- 
turns from  the  foundation  the  true  nature  and  dignity 
of  man,  at  the  same  time  cherishes  the  most  pernicious 
laziness  and  sloth,  or  stirs  up  the  depraved  errors  of 
fanaticism.  .  .  .  As  to  that  which  is  said  to  be 
above  reason,  the  truth  of  which  can  by  no  means  be 
understood,  there  is  no  possible  way  open  to  the  human 
mind  to  demonstrate  or  affirm  it;  wherefore  to  acknowl- 
edge or  affirm  that  which  is  thought  to  be  above  rea- 
son is  rightly  said  to  be  against  reason  and  contral- 
to it. 

"  The  persuasion  concerning  the  supernatural  and 
miraculous,  and  at  the  same  time  immediate,  revelation 
of  God,  cannot  be  reconciled  with  the  idea  of  God 
eternal,  always  consistent  with  himself,  omnipotent, 
omniscient,  and  most  wise,  by  whose  power,  operative 
through  all  eternity  and  exerted  in  perfect  harmony 
with  the  highest  wisdom,  we  rightly  teach  that  the 
whole  nature  of  things  exists  and  is  preserved.  .  .  . 
This  being  so,  it  seems  that  the  natural  revelation  or 
manifestation  of  God,  made  by  the  works  of  nature,  is 
the  only  one  which  can  be  rightly  defended,  and  this 
may  be  divided  into  universal  or  common,  and  particu- 
lar or  singular.  The  universal  indeed  is  affected  by  the 
natural  faculties  of  the  mind,  and  other  helps  of  the 
universal  nature  of  things,  by  which  man  is  led  to  con- 
ceive and  cultivate  the  knowledge  of  divine  things. 
That  we  call  particular  and  mediate,  in  a  sense  different 


10  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

from  the  elder  writers,  which  is  contained  in  the  com- 
pass of  things  happening  according  to  nature,  by  which, 
God  being  the  author,  some  men  are  excited  abote 
others  to  attain  the  principles  of  true  religion,  and  to 
impart  with  signal  success  those  things,  accommodated 
indeed  to  the  desires  of  their  countrymen,  and  sanc- 
tioned by  some  particular  form  of  religious  instruction. 
A  revelation  of  this  kind  consists  as  well  in  singular 
gifts  of  genius  and  mind,  with  which  the  messenger, 
and,  as  it  were,  its  interpreter,  is  perceived  to  be  fur- 
nished, as  in  illustrious  proofs  of  divine  providence, 
conspicuous  in  his  external  life.  But  the  more  agreeably 
to  the  will  of  that  same  God  he  uses  these  helps  to  be 
ascribed  to  God,  and  full  of  a  certain  divine  fervor,  and 
excelling  in  zeal  for  virtue  and  piety,  the  more  he  scat- 
ters the  seeds  of  a  doctrine  truly  divine,  i.  e.,  true  in 
itself,  and  worthy  of  God,  and  to  be  propagated  by 
suitable  institutions,  the  more  truly  will  he  nourish 
amongst  other  men  with  the  authority  of  a  divine 
teacher  or  ambassador.  For  as  our  mind  partakes  of 
the  divine  nature  and  disposition  (2  Peter  i.  4),  so 
without  the  favor  and  help  of  the  Deity  it  is  not  car. 
ried  out  to  a  more  true  species  of  religion. 

"  But  whatever  narrations  especially  accommodated 
to  a  certain  age,  and  relating  miracles  and  mysteries,  are 
united  with  the  history  and  subject-matter  of  revelation 
of  this  kind,  these  ought  to  be  referred  to  the  natural 
sources  and  true  nature  of  human  knowledge.  By  how 
much  the  more  clearly  the  author  of  the  Christian 
religion,  not  without  the  help  of  Deity,  exhibited  to  men 
the  idea  of  reason  imbued  with  true  religion,  so  as  to 
represent  as  it  were  an  apaugasma  of  the  divine  reason, 
or  the  divine  spirit,  by  so  much  the  more  diligently 
ought  man  to  strive  to  approach  as  nearly  as  possible 


INTRODUCTION.  11 

to  form  that  archetype  in  the  mind,  and  to  study  to  imi- 
tate it  in  life  and  manners  to  the  utmost  of  his  ability. 
Behold  here  the  intimate  and  eternal  union  and  agree- 
ment of  Christianity  with  Rationalism." 

Staudlin,  at  first  a  Rationalist,  but  in  later  life  more 
inclined  to  supernaturalism,  says  :  "  I  do  not  now  look 
to  tho  various  meanings  in  which  the  word  Rationalism 
has  been  used.  I  understand  by  it  here  only  generally 
the  opinion  that  mankind  are  led  by  their  reason  and 
especially  by  the  natural  powers  of  their  mind  and 
soul,  and  by  the  observation  of  nature  which  surrounds 
them,  to  a  true  knowledge  of  divine  and  sensible  things, 
and  that  reason  has  the  highest  authority  and  right  of 
decision  in  matters  of  faith  and  morality,  so  that  an 
edifice  of  faith  and  morals  built  on  this  foundation  shall 
be  called  Rationalism.  It  still  remains  undecided 
whether  this  system  declares  that  a  supernatural  revela- 
tion is  impossible  and  ought  to  be  rejected.  That  no- 
tion rather  lies  in  the  word  Naturalism,  which  however 
is  sometimes  used  as  synonymous  with  Rationalism. 
It  has  been  well  said  that  Naturalism  is  distinguished 
from  Rationalism  by  rejecting  all  and  every  revelation 
of  God,  especially  any  extraordinary  one  through  cer- 
tain men.  This,  however,  is  not  the  case  with  many 
persons  called  Naturalists  both  by  themselves  and  others. 
Supernaturalism  consists  in  general  in  the  conviction 
that  God  has  revealed  himself  supernaturally  and  im- 
mediately. What  is  revealed  might  perhaps  be  discov- 
ered by  natural  methods,  but  either  not  at  all  or  very 
late  by  those  to  whom  it  is  revealed.  It  may  also  be 
something  which  man  could  never  have  known  by  nat- 
ural methods ;  and  then  arises  the  question,  whether 
man  is  capable  of  such  a  revelation.  The  notion  of  a 
miracle  cannot  well  be  separated  from  such  a  revelation, 


1 2  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

whether  it  happens  out  of,  on,  or  in  men.  What  is 
revealed  may  belong  to  the  order  of  nature,  but  an 
order  higher  and  unknown  to  us,  which  we  could  never 
have  known  without  miracles,  and  cannot  bring  undeT 
the  law  of  nature."  * 

Professor  Hahn,  in  speaking  of  the  work  just  refer, 
red  to,  and  of  the  subject  in  general,  makes  the  follow- 
ing remarks :  "  In  very  recent  times,  during  which 
Rationalism  has  excited  so  much  attention,  two  persons 
especially,  Bretschneider  and  Staudlin,  have  endeavored 
to  point  out  the  historical  use  of  the  word,  but  both 
have  failed.  It  is  therefore  worth  while  to  examine 
the  matter  afresh.  With  respect  to  the  Rationalists, 
they  give  out  Rationalism  as  a  very  different  matter 
from  Naturalism.  Rohr,  the  author  of  the  Letters  on 
Rationalism,  chooses  to  understand  by  Naturalism  only 
Materialism ;  and  Wegscheider,  only  Pantheism.  In 
this  way  those  persons  who  have  been  usually  reckoned 
the  heads  of  the  Naturalists ;  namely,  Herbert,  Tindal, 
and  others ;  will  be  entirely  separated  from  them,  for 
they  were  far  removed  from  Pantheism  or  Materialism. 
Bretschneider,  who  has  set  on  foot  the  best  inquiry  on 
this  point,  says  that  the  word  Rationalism  has  been 
confused  with  the  word  Naturalism  since  the  appear- 
ance of  the  Kantian  philosophy,  and  that  it  was  intro- 
duced into  theology  by  Reinhard  and  Gabler.  An 
accurate  examination  respecting  these  words  gives  the 
following  results :  The  word  Naturalism  arose  first  in 
the  sixteenth  century,  and  was  spread  in  the  seventeenth, 
It  was  understood  to  include  those  who  allowed  no 
other  knowledge  of  religion  except  the  natural,  which 
man  could  shape  out  of  his  own  strength,  and  conse- 
quently excluded  all  supernatural  revelation.     As  to 

1  Geschichte  des  Rationalismus  und  Supernaturalismus,  pp.  3-4. 


INTRODUCTION.  13 

the  different  forms  of  Naturalism,  theologians  say  there 
are  three ;  the  first,  which  they  call  Pelagianism,  and 
which  considers  human  dispositions  and  notions  as 
perfectly  pure  and  clear  by  themselves,  and  the  religious 
knowledge  derived  from  them  as  sufficiently  explicit 
A  grosser  kind  denies  all  particular  revelation  ;  and  the 
grossest  of  all  considers  the  world  as  God.  As  to  Ra- 
tionalism,  this  word  was  used  in  the  seventeenth  and 
eighteenth  centuries  by  those  who  considered  reason  as 
the  source  and  norm  of  faith.  Amos  Comenius  seems 
first  to  have  used  this  word  in  1661,  and  it  never  had 
a  good  sense.  In  the  eighteenth  century  it  was  applied 
to  those  who  were  in*  earlier  times  called  by  the  name 
of  Naturalist."  1 

Of  all  writers  on  the  subject  of  Rationalism  we  give 
the  palm  of  excellence  to  the  devout  and  learned  Hugh 
James  Rose,  of  Cambridge  University.  As  far  as  we 
know  he  was  the  first  to  expose  to  the  English-speaking 
world  the  sad  state  to  which  this  form  of  skepticism 
had  reduced  Germany.  Having  visited  that  country  in 
1824,  he  delivered  four  discourses  on  the  subject  before 
the  university,  which  were  afterward  published  under 
the  title  of  Hie  State  of  Protestantism  in  Germany. 
Thus  far,  in  spite  of  the  new  works  which  may  have 
appeared,  this  account  of  Rationalism  has  not  been 
superseded.  We  shall  have  occasion  more  than  once  to 
refer  to  its  interesting  pages.     Of  Rationalism  he  says : 

"  The  word  has  been  used  in  Germany  in  various 
senses,  and  has  been  made  to  embrace  alike  those  who 
positively  reject  all  revelation  and  those  who  profess  to 
receive  it.  I  am  inclined,  however,  to  believe  that  the 
distinction  between  Naturalists  and  Rationalists  is  not 
quite  so  wide,  either,  as  it  would  appear  to  be  at  first 

1  De  Rationalismi :  A  Disputation  at  Leipzig. 


14  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

sight,  or  as  one  of  them  assuredly  wishes  it  to  appear. 
For  it*  I  receive  a  system,  be  it  of  religion,  of  morals,  or 
of  politics,  only  so  far  as  it  approve  itself  to  my  reason, 
whatever  be  the  authority  that  presents  it  to  me,  it  is 
idle  to  say  that  I  receive  the  system  out  of  any  respect 
to  that  authority.  I  receive  it  only  because  my  reason 
approves  it,  and  I  should  of  course  do  so  if  an  authority 
of  far  inferior  value  were  to  present  the  system  to  me. 
This  is  what  that  division  of  Rationalists,  which  pro- 
fesses to  receive  Christianity  and  at  the  same  time  to 
make  reason  the  supreme  arbiter  in  matters  of  faith,  has 
done.  Tlieir  system,  in  a  word,  is  this  :  they  assume 
certain  general  principles,  which  they  '  maintain  to  be 
the  necessary  deductions  of  reason  from  an  extended 
and  unprejudiced  contemplation  of  the  natural  and 
moral  order  of  things,  and  to  be  in  themselves  im- 
mutable and  universal.  Consequently  anything  which, 
on  however  good  authority,  may  be  advanced  in  ap- 
parent opposition  to  them  must  either  be  rejected  as 
unworthy  of  rational  belief,  or  at  least  explained  away, 
till  it  is  made  to  accord  with  the  assumed  principles, — 
and  the  truth  or  falsehood  of  all  doctrines  proposed  is 
to  be  decided  according  to  their  agreement  or  disagree- 
ment with  those  principles.'  When  Christianity,  then, 
is  presented  to  them,  they  inquire  what  there  is  in  it 
which  agrees  with  their  assumed  principles,  and  whatso- 
ever does  so  agree,  they  receive  as  true.  But  whatever 
is  true  comes  from  God,  and  consequently  all  of  Chris 
tianity  which  they  admit  to  be  true,  they  hold  to  be 
divine. 

" '  Those  who  are  generally  termed  Rationalists,' 
says  Dr.  Bretschneider,  '  admit  universally,  in  Chris- 
tianity, a  divine,  benevolent,  and  positive  appointment 
for  the  good  of  mankind,  and  Jesus  as  a  Messenger  of 


INTRODUCTION.  15 

divine  Providence,  believing  that  the  true  and  everlast- 
ing word  of  God  is  contained  in  the  Holy  Scripture, 
and  that  by  the  same  the  welfare  of  mankind  will  be 
Dbtained   and   extended.     But    they   deny   therein    a 
supernatural  and  miraculous  working  of  God,  and  con- 
sider the  object  of  Christianity, to  be  that  of  introducing 
into  the  world  such_a  xeligion  as  reason  can  compre- 
hend ;  and  they  distinguish  the  essential  from  the  un- 
essential, and  what  is  local  and  temporary  from  that 
which   is   universal    and    permanent   in   Christianity.'' 
There  is,  however,  a  third  class  of  divines,  which  in  fact 
differs  very  little  from  this,  though  very  widely  in  pro- 
fession.    They  affect  to  allow  '  a  revealing  operation  of 
God,'  but  establish  on  internal  proofs  rather  than  on 
miracles  the  divine  nature  of  Christianity.     They  allow 
that  revelation  may  contain  much  out  of  the  power  of 
reason  to  explain,  but  say  that  it  should  assert  nothing 
contraiy  to  reason,  but  rather  what  may  be  proved  by 
it.     This   sounds  better,  but  they  who  are  acquainted 
with  the  writings  of  the  persons  thus  described,  know 
that   by  establishing   Christianity  on   internal  proofs, 
they  only  mean   the  accepting  those  doctrines  which 
they  like,  and  which  seem  to  them  reasonable,  and  that 
though  they  allow  in  theory  that  revelation  may  con- 
tain what  are  technically  called  much  above  reason,  yet 
in  practice  they  reject  the  positive  doctrines  of  Chris- 
tianity (I  mean  especially  the  doctrines  of  the  Trinity, 
the  Atonement,  the  Mediation  and  Intercession  of  om 
Lord,  Original  Sin,  and  Justification  by  Faith),  because 
they  allege  that  those  doctrines  are  contrary  to  reason. 
The  difference  between  them  and  the  others  is  therefore 
simply  thie,  that  while  the  others  set  no  limits  at  all  to 
the  powers  of  reason  in  matters  of  faith,  they  set  such 
a  limit  in  theory  but  not  in  practice,  and  consequently 


16  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

cannot    justly    demand    to     be    separated    from    the 
others."1 

One  of  the  ablest  advocates  of  Supernaturalism 
among  English  divines  is  the  late  Dr.  A.  McCaul,  of 
London.  He  joins  issue  successfully  with  the  Ration- 
alists. We  quote  a  specimen  of  his  method  of  argu- 
ment. His  definition  of  Rationalism  is  beautifully 
lucid  and  logical.     He  says  : 

"  This  doctrine  then  plainly  denies  the  existence  and 
the  possibility  of  a  supernatural  and  immediate  revela- 
tion from  the  Almighty,  and  maintains  that  to  claim 
supreme  authority  for  any  supposed  supernatural  reli- 
gion is  degrading  to  the  dignity  and  the  nature  of  man. 
It  enters  into  direct  conflict  with  the  statements  of  the 
Old  Testament  writers,  who  clearly  and  unmistakably 
assert  the  existence  of  a  divine  communication  which  is 
called  '  The  law  of  the  Lord,'  '  The  law  of  his  mouth,1 
'The  testimony  of  God,'  'The  saying  of  God,'  'The 
word  of  the  Lord,'  '  The  word  that  goeth  forth  out  of 
his  mouth,' '  The  judgment  of  the  Lord,' '  The  command 
ment  of  the  Lord.' 

"  Now  it  is  not  intended  to  strain  the  allusion  to 
the  mouth  or  lips  of  the  Lord  beyond  that  which  the 
figure  may  fairly  bear.  But  the  expression  does  cer- 
tainly mean  that  there  is  some  direct,  immediate,  and 
therefore  supernatural  communication  from  the  great 
Creator  of  all  things.  The  writers  who  used  these  ex- 
pressions did  not  mean  that  as  reason  is  given  by  God, 
so  wdiatever  reason  may  excogitate  is  the  word  of  Goc1 
They  would  not  have  used  these  expressions  concerning 
Truth  that  may  be  found  in  heathen  writers.  They 
believed  and  recorded  that  God  had  manifested  himseL 
audibly  to  the  ears,  and  visibly  to  the  eyes  of  men. 

1  State  of  Protestantism  in  Germany .     pp.  XXII-XXVI. 


INTRODUCTION.  17 

They  did  not  therefore  hold  the  doctrine  that  super- 
natural revelation  is  impossible,  or  derogatory  to  reason 
or  inconsistent  with  the  nature  and  attributes  of  Him 
who  is  eternal. 

"  It  is  almost  needless  to  refer  to  instances.  God 
spake  with  Adam,  with  Cain,  with  Noah.  In  the  lattei 
case  the  communication  led  to  such  actions,  and  was 
followed  by  such  results,  that  without  rejecting  the  his- 
tory altogether,  there  can  be  no  doubt  of  a  miraculous 
communication.  Noah  knew  of  the  coming  flood — 
built  an  ark  for  himself  and  a  multitude  of  animals — 
prepared  food — was  saved  with  his  family,  while  the 
world  perished — floated  for  months  on  the  waters,  and 
when  he  came  out,  had  again  a  manifestation  of  the 
Deity.  So  Abraham,  so  Moses,  not  now  to  recount  any 
more.  Indeed  the  writer  referred  to  does  not  deny 
this.  He  admits  that  in  Scripture  the  knowledge  of 
divine  things  is  referred  immediately  to  the  Revelation 
of  God,  and  that  though  the  modes  of  this  Revelation 
are  various,  they  appear  often  to  overstep  the  laws  and 
course  of  nature.  He  enumerates  as  modes  of  revela- 
tion, Epiphanies  of  God  himself,  of  angels — heavenly 
voices — dreams — afflatus,  or  the  Holy  Spirit. 

"  How  then  does  he  reconcile  this  with  his  denial 
of  all  supernatural  revelation,  or  show  that  these  Epi- 
phanies of  God  and  angels,  were  mere  developments  of 
reason  ?  He  does  not  try  to  reconcile  them  at  all.  He 
simply  rejects  them  as  false.  He  comes  directly  into 
collision  with  the  credibility  and  veracity  of  the  Scrip- 
ture narratives,  and  therefore  leaves  us  no  alternative 
but  to  disbelieve  the  Bible  as  fabulous,  or  to  reject 
Rationalism  as  inconsistent  with  our  rule  of  faith.  This 
system  not  only  generally  denies  the  possibility  of 
supernatural  revelation,  but  asserts  that  all  the  partial- 


18  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

lar  narratives  of  all  such  communications  from  God  are 
incredible ;  nothing  better  than  ghost  stories  or  fairy 
tales  ;  equally  unworthy  of  God  and  man,  the  offspring 
of  an  ignorant  and  unenlightened  age  and  nation,  and 
therefore  rejected  by  these  men  of  reason  and  science. 
How  this  differs  from  the  doctrine  of  Deists  and  open 
opposers  of  Christianity,  it  is  difficult  to  conceive,  ex- 
cept that  it  seems  to  be  rather  worse.     Even  Boling- 
broke  admits  supernatural  Kevelation  to  be  possible. 
Tom  Paine  himself  says,  '  Revelation  when  applied  to 
religion  means    something  immediately  communicated 
from   God  to  man.     No  one  will  deny  or  dispute  the 
power  of  the  Almighty  to  make  such  a  communication 
if  he  pleases.'     Spinoza  asserts  that  the  "  Israelites  heard 
a  true  voice  at  the  delivery  of  the  ten  commandments  J 
that  God  spoke  face  to  face  with  Moses  ;  and  generally, 
that  God  can  communicate  immediately  with  men,  and 
that  though  natural  science  is  divine,  yet  its  propagators 
cannot  be  called  prophets.'   That  the  Rationalist  view  of 
revelation  is  contrary  to  the  popular  belief  of  Christians 
generally,  and  of  Christian  churches  and  divines  partic- 
ularly,   there   can   be   no    doubt.     It    is   intended   so 
to  be.     ... 

"  The  Rationalist  professes  to  believe  that  all  the 
knowledge  of  truth  at  which  man  arrives  is  owing  to 
the  original  wisdom,  will,  and  power  of  the  Almighty 
in  giving  man  a  certain  intellectual  constitution,  to  be 
unfolded  by  the  circumstances  of  human  history  and 
necessities — that  therefore  moral  and  religious  truth, 
such  as  the  Rationalists  acknowledge,  is  still  to  be 
ascribed  to  the  purposes  and  power  and  efficacy  of  the 
Great  Spirit,  acting  upon  that  which  is  material  and 
compound. 

fa  Why,  then,  should  it  be  impossible  for  the  Creatoi 


INTRODUCTION.  1 9 

to  shorten  the  process,  to  help  man  in  his  painful  and 
often  unsuccessful  search  after  truth,  and  to  make 
known  that  which  exists  in  the  Divine  mind  and  pur- 
pose ?  To  say  that  he  cannot,  is  in  fact  to  depose  him 
from  the  throne  of  omnipotence,  and  to  bring  us  back 
either  to  two  eternal  independent  principles,  incapable 
of  all  communication,  or  to  drive  us  to  Pantheism.  If 
there  ever  was  a  period  in  duration  in  which  God  could 
act  upon  matter,  or  endue  infinite  intelligences  with  the 
means  and  capability  of  knowledge,  he  can  do  so  still."  ' 

M.  Saintes,  who  has  investigated  the  history  of  this 
subject  more  thoroughly  than  any  other  writer,  says  of 
the  significations  and  limits  of  Rationalism  : 

"  I  myself  at  first  imagined  that  it  signified  the  wise 
and  constant  exercise  of  reason  on  religious  subjects, 
but  in  studying  the  matter  historically  I  soon  found 
that  it  is  the  same  with  this  word  as  with  many  others 
which,  having  lost  their  original  meaning,  now  express 
an  idea  directly  contrary  to  that  which  their  etymology 
seems  to  indicate.  It  is  indisputably  true  that  Gocl,  in 
granting  reason  to  man,  has  not  forbidden  its  exercise. 
As  religion,  the  queen  of  all  minds,  possesses  indestruc- 
tible rights  over  them,  so  has  human  reason  also  rights 
which  cannot  be  disputed.  Kant  has  justly  said,  The 
faith  which  should  oppose  itself  to  reason  could  not 
longer  exist.  With  this  view  we  form  an  idea  of  Ra- 
tionalism similar  to  that  conceived  by  the  great  Leib- 
nitz, which,  with  our  present  ideas  of  truth,  we  cannot 
regard  as  unreasonable.  But  this  right  of  human 
reason  to  examine  and  discuss  differs  widely  from  its 
pelf-constitution  as  supreme  judge  on  religious  matter;, 
and  from  the  wish  to  submit  God  and  conscience  to  its 
own  tribunal,  which  it  declares  to  be  infallible.     This, 

1  ITioughts  on  Rationalism,     pp.  23-32. 


20  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

however,  has  been  the  case  in  modern  times  when  Phi- 
losophy has  openly  avowed  itself  the  enemy  of  Chris 
tianity,  and  when  those  who  were  terrified  by  its  rash 
demands  have  sought  to  confound  them  by  the  devices 
of  Rationalism — thus  hastening  to  rain  the  edifice  which 
they  aspired  to  restore.  .  .  .  Rationalism  must  not, 
therefore,  be  understood  to  signify  the  use  which  theo- 
logians have  made  of  reason  in  matters  of  faith.  Did 
the  reader  thus  interpret  it  he  would  mistake  our  aim. 
He  would  be  deceived  as  to  the  character  of  the  labors 
which  it  is  our  wish  to  describe.  He  would  attribute 
to  the  author  of  this  history  intentions  which  he  could 
not  entertain,  and  religious  opinions  which  his  respect  for 
human  reason  would  compel  him  to  disavow.  The 
apostles  of  the  gospel  continually  appeal  to  the  reason 
of  their  hearers,  and  Christ  himself  argues  the  increas- 
ing exercise  of  the  eye  of  the  soul,  as  he  calls  conscience, 
in  judging  of  the  truth  which  he  announces — Matt.  vi. 
23.  For  a  good  conscience  is  always  better  disposed  to 
rise  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth ;  while  one  heavy 
laden  and  harassed  is  exceedingly  prone  to  receive  dog- 
mas without  properly  understanding  their  import, 
because  it  feels  their  truth  through  the  consolations 
which  they  offer.  In  no  a  e  of  Christianity  has  there 
arisen  a  serious  discussion  on  this  subject,  though  the 
extravagant  pretensions  of  Rationalism  have  provoked 
some  exaggerations  which  can  never  prevail  over  the 
ancient  Christian  system.  That  system  by  no  means 
forbade  the  exercise  of  human  intelligence  in  religious 
matters,  though  it  employed  a  superior  and  only  infa1 
lible  reason — the  divine  reason,  the  doctrinal  expressioL 
of  which  is  found  in  the  books  which  all  Christians 
have  hitherto  considered  divine,  and  whose  authenticity 
md  truth  cannot  be  disputed  without  overturning  that 


INTRODUCTION.  2 1 

Jhristianity,  which  has  been  professed  during  eighteen 
centuries.  But  modern  Rationalism  has  done  more 
than  assert  the  right  of  exercising  reason ;  it  has  pre- 
tended that  to  this  faculty  alone  belongs  the  privilege 
of  deciding  on  man's  religious  belief  and  his  moral 
duty  ;  and  that  if,  from  long  custom,  any  respect  is  still 
due  to  revelation,  it  should  only  receive  it  when  it  is 
not  opposed  to  the  judgments  of  reason.  But  if  this 
reason  were  sufficient  for  mankind,  why  should  divine 
revelation  be  in  any  case  opposed  to  it  ? 

"  Rationalism  is  not  a  systematic  incredulity  as  to 
religious  truths.  Far  from  being  so.  it  makes  preten- 
sions of  developing  the  religious  feelings  to  the  highest 
degree  ;  and  there  is  in  the  writings  of  its  most  distin- 
guished disciples  something  which  arouses  even  the 
most  lethargic  minds.  But  it  is  far  from  attaining  its 
end  ;  for  although  it  constitutes  itself  the  supreme  judge 
of  Christianity,  it  does  not  really  adopt  one  of  the  lead- 
ing doctrines  of  that  religion  which  alone  has  power 
over  the  moral  nature  of  man.  Its  influence,  if  we  ob- 
serve it  closely,  extends  only  over  his  feelings ;  it  fails 
to  penetrate  into  the  depths  of  his  being ;  and  can  we 
forget  that  one  of  its  essential  characteristics  is  to  wage 
deadly  war  against  the  supernatural  element  which 
abounds  in  the  Bible,  and  which  Rationalism  would 
wholly  eradicate  %  An  enlightened  Supernaturalist  will 
then  very  willingly  confess  that  Naturalism  may  be 
professed  with  a  semblance  of  reason  and  in  good  faith, 
and  he  can  even  consider  it  as  a  system  of  philosophy 
wherein  are  to  be  found  fewer  philosophical  elements 
than  in  any  other.  But  simple  good  sense  forbids  him 
to  imagine  it  possible  to  profess  Rationalism  and  at  the 
same  time  to  retain  the  name  of  Christian."  l 

1  Histoire  du  Rationalisme.     pp.  1-6. 


22  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

The  most  recent  defence  of  Rationalism  is  by  Mr. 
Lecky.1  He  has  written  in  great  calmness,  taken  great 
pains  to  generalize  his  investigations,  and  followed 
closely  in  the  steps  of  the  late  Mr.  Buckle,  in  his  frag 
ment  of  the  History  of  Civilization.  But  his  argu 
inent  is  false.  According  to  Mr.  Lecky,  human  reason 
is  the  only  factor  of  history.  The  agency  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  is  ignored.  Elaborate  creeds  and  liturgical  ser- 
vices are  a  barrier  to  the  mind's  progress,  because  they 
shackle  the  intellect  by  impure  traditions.  Rationalism 
is  the  only  relief  of  these  later  times.  "  Its  central  con- 
ception," says  our  author,  "is  the  elevation  of  conscience 
into  a  position  of  supreme  authority  as  the  religious 
organ,  a  verifying  faculty  discriminating  between  truth 
and  error.  It  regards  Christianity  as  designed  to  pre- 
side over  the  moral  development  of  mankind,  as  a  con 
ception  which  was  to  become  more  and  more  sublimated 
and  spiritualized  as  the  human  mind  passed  into  new 
phases,  and  was  able  to  bear  the  splendor  of  a  more 
unclouded  light.  Religion  it  believes  to  be  no  excep- 
tion to  the  general  law  of  progress,  but  rather  the  high- 
est form  of  its  manifestation,  and  its  earlier  systems  but 
the  necessary  steps  of  an  imperfect  development.  In 
its  eyes  the  moral  element  of  Christianity  is  as  the  sun 
in  heaven,  and  dogmatic  systems  are  as  the  clouds  that 
intercept  and  temper  the  exceeding  brightness  of  its 
rays.  The  insect,  whose  existence  is  but  for  a  moment, 
might  well  imagine  that  these  were  indeed  eternal,  that 
their  majestic  columns  could  never  fail,  and  that  their 
luminous  folds  were  the  very  source  and  centre  of  light. 
And  yet  they  shift  and  vary  with  each  changing  breeze; 
the^  blend  and  separate ;  they  assume  new  forms  and 

1  History  of  the  Rise  and  Influence  of  the  Spirit  of  nationalism  ir 
Europe.     By  W.  E.  H.  Lecky,  M.  A.     2  vols.     Longmans,  London.  1865. 


INTRODUCTION.  23 

exhibit  new  dimensions ;  as  the  sun  that  is  above  them 
waxes  more  glorious  in  its  power,  they  are  permeated 
and  at  last  absorbed  by  its  increasing  splendor ;  they 
recede,  and  wither,  and  disappear,  and  the  eye  ranges 
fai  beyond  the  sphere  they  had  occupied  into  the  in- 
6nity  of  glory  that  is  before  them.  .  .  .  Rationalism 
is  a  system  which  would  unite  in  one  sublime  synthesis 
all  the  past  forms  of  human  belief,  which  accepts  with 
triumphant  alacrity  each  new  development  of  science, 
having  no  stereotyped  standard  to  defend,  and  which 
represents  the  human  mind  as  pursuing  on  the  highest 
subjects  a  path  of  continual  progress  toward  the  fullest 
and  most  transcendent  knowledge  of  the  Deity.  .  .  . 
It  clusters  around  a  series  of  essentially  Christian  concep- 
tions— equality,  fraternity,  the  suppression  of  war,  the 
elevation  of  the  poor,  the  love  of  truth,  and  the  diffu- 
sion of  liberty.  It  revolves  around  the  ideal  of  Chris- 
tianity, and  represents  its  spirit  without  its  dogmatic 
system  and  its  supernatural  narratives.  From  both  of 
these  it  unhesitatingly  recoils,  while  deriving  all  its 
strength  and  nourishment  f  rom  Christian  ethics?  1 

The  present  age,  if  we  hearken  to  Mr.  Lecky,  is 
purely  Rationalistic,  because  purely  progressive.  The 
world  has  emerged  from  its  blindness  and  ignorance  by 
the  innate  force  of  the  mind.  Reason,  the  great  ma- 
gician, has  uplifted  its  wand ;  and  lo,  the  creatures  of 
night  disappear !  It  has  dispelled  the  foolish  old  no 
tions  of  magic,  witchcraft,  and  miracles.  It  has  over- 
come the  spirit  of  persecution,  the  childish  conception 
of  original  sin,  and  the  doctrine  of  eternal  punishment 
It  has  put  an  end  to  bull-baiting,  cock-fighting,  and  all 
the  lower  forms  of  vicious  pleasure.     It  has  secularized 

1  History  of  the  Rise  and  Spirit  of  Rationalism  in  Europe,  vol.  L, 
pp.  183-185. 


24  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

politics,  overthrown  the  notion  of  the  divine  right  of 
kings,  and  now  c-reates  and  fosters  all  the  industrial 
developments  of  the  age.  Protestantism  is  excellent 
when  allied  to  Rationalism ;  but  when  opposed  to  it,  it 
is  no  better  than  any  other  conglomeration  of  creed? 
and  liturgies.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  a  fixed  notion 
of  God  and  Providence.  The  conceptions  of  man  on 
these  subjects  will  change  with  the  progress  of  the  race. 
Human  reason,  therefore,  and  not  revelation,  is  the  sole 
arbiter  of  truth. 

Thus  Mr.  Lecky  places  himself  beside  his  prede- 
cessors in  ignoring  the  agency  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  either 
in  giving  inspired  truth  to  the  world,  or  in  educating 
the  church. 

From  the  foregoing  authorities  it  is  very  apparent 
that  the  Rationalists  do  not  deny  the  special  features 
of  skepticism  with  which  their  opponents  charge  them. 
They  admit  frankly  that  they  give  the  precedence  to 
Reason,  when  the  alternative  is  Reason  or  Revelation, 
instead  of  adopting  a  positive  creed  from  the  principle, 
that,  if  we  would  ascertain  the  character  of  Revelation, 
we  must  begin  our  inquiry  by  examining  the  doctrines 
it  contains,  and  then  by  comparing  them  with  our  no- 
tions of  what  a  Revelation  ought  to  be.  Thus  the  ca- 
pricious dictates  of  reason  are  made  to  decide  the  quality 
of  revealed  truth.  Besides,  wherever  a  mysterious  ac- 
count is  contained  in  a  book  which  in  the  main  is  ac- 
cepted, such  mystery  is  cast  out  as  altogether  unlikely, 
probably  the  poetic  version  of  some  early  legend.  A 
miracle  is  recounted ;  one  of  the  best  attested  of  all 
"  It  could  never  have  happened,"  the  Rationalists  say, 
•'  for  Nature  has  made  it  impossible." 

There  have  been  several  classes  of  Rationalists. 
Some  were  men  of  very  worthy  character ;  and,  save  in 


INTRODUCTION.  25 

their  opinions,  were  entitled  to  the  high  respect  of  theii 
generation.  Semler  lived  a  beautiful  life ;  and  his 
glowing  utterance  on  his  daughter's  death  exhibited 
not  only  a  father's  love,  but  a  Christian's  faith.  Bret- 
schneider,  himself  a  Rationalist,  gives  the  following 
classification  of  his  confreres  :       » 

The  first  class  consider  Revelation  a  superstition, 
aud  Jesus  either  an  enthusiast  or  a  deceiver.  To 
thi?  class  belong  Wiiusch  and  Paalzow,  but  no  divine. 
The  second  class  do  not  allow  that  there  was  any 
divine  operation  in  Christianity  in  any  way,  and 
refer  the  origin  of  Christianity  to  mere  natural  causes. 
They  make  the  life  of  Christ  a  mere  romance,  and  him- 
self a  member  of  secret  associations ;  and  consider  the 
Scriptures  as  only  human  writings  in  which  the  word  of 
God  is  not  to  be  found.  To  this  class  belong  Bahrdt, 
Reimarus,  and  Venturini  (the  last  two  not  divines),  and 
Brennecke.  The  third  class  comprise  the  persons 
usually  called  Rationalists.  They  acknowledge  in 
Christianity  an  institution  divine,  beneficent,  and  for 
the  good  of  the  world  ;  and  Jesus  as  a  messenger  of 
God  ;  and  they  think  that  in  Scripture  is  found  a  true 
and  eternal  word  of  God, — only  they  deny  any  super- 
natural and  miraculous  working  of  God,  and  make  the 
object  of  Christianity  to  be  the  introduction  of  religion 
into  the  world,  its  preservation,  and  extension.  They 
distinguish  between  what  is  essential  and  non-essential 
in  Christianity,  between  what  is  local  and  temporal,  and 
what  is  universal.  That  is  to  say,  they  allow  that  there 
is  good  in  Christianity — that  all  that  is  good  comes  from 
God  ;  but  miracles,  inspiration,  everything  immediately 
coming  from  God,  they  wholly  disbelieve.  Among  this 
class  are  Kant,  Steinbart,  Krug,  as  philosophers ;  and, 
as  divines,  W.  A.  Teller,  Loffler,  Thiess,  Henke,  J.  E.  C 


26  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Schmidt,  De  Wette,  Paulus,  Wegscheider,  and  Rohr 
The  fourth  class  go  a  little  higher.  They  consider  the 
Bible  and  Christianity  as  a  divine  revelation  in  a  higher 
sense  than  the  nationalists.  They  assume  a  revealing 
operation  of  God  distinguishable  from  his  common 
providence;  carefully  distinguish  the  periods  of  this 
divine  direction ;  found  the  divinity  of  Christianity  more 
on  its  internal  evidence  than  on  miracles ;  but  especially 
separate  church  belief  from  the  doctrines  of  Scripture ; 
reform  it  according  to  the  sentiments  of  the  Divine 
Word ;  and  require  that  Reason  should  try  Revelation, 
and  that  Revelation  should  contain  nothing  against, 
though  it  may  well  have  much  above,  Reason.  Doder- 
lein,  Morus,  Reinhard,  Ammon,  Schott,  Niemeyer,  Bret- 
schneider,  and  others,  belong  to  this  class. 

The  only  objection  to  this  classification  is  the  one 
urged  by  Rose ;  namely,  that  only  a  few  of  the  theo- 
logical writers  would  appear  to  have  been  violent  Ra- 
tionalists, while  the  larger  class  would  seem  to  have 
held  the  moderate  opinions  which  Bretschneider  him- 
self professes  to  .adopt.  The  contrary  is  the  fact,  as 
any  one  at  all  acquainted  with  the  number  of  theologi- 
cal writers  of  the  period  in  question  can  determine. 
The  spirit  of  the  Rationalistic  literature  of  the  time  was 
decidedly  violent  and  destructive. 

In  glancing  at  some  of  the  general  causes  which 
have  made  Rationalism  so  successful  in  its  hold  upon 
the  popular  mind,  we  find  that  it  has  possessed  many 
advantages  over  almost  any  other  form  of  skepticism 
that  has  appeared  during  the  history  of  the  church. 

Prominent  among  these  causes  were  its  multiplied 
affiliations  with  the  church.  It  had  thus  a  fine  van- 
tage-ground on  which  to  wage  deadly  war  against  the 
text  and  doctrines  of  the  Bible.     The  first  antagonists 


I2JTE0D  U  CTIOX .  2  7 

of  Christianity  came  from  without ;  and  they  dealt  their 
heaviest  blows  with  a  deep  and  thorough  conviction 
that  the  whole  system  they  were  combating  was 
absolutely  false,  absurd,  and  base.  And,  in  fact,  many 
later  enemies  of  Revelation  have  come  from  without  the 
pale  of  Christianity.  But  the  great  Coryphaei  of  Ra- 
tionalism have  sprung  from  the  very  bosom  of  the 
church,  were  educated  under  her  maternal  care  ;  and,  at 
the  same  time  that  they  were  endeavoring  to  demolish 
the  superstructure  :>f  divine  inspiration,  they  were,  in 
the  eyes  of  the  people,  its  strongest  pillars,  the  accred- 
ited spiritual  guides  of  the  land,  teaching  in  the  most 
famed  universities  of  the  Continent,  and  preaching  in 
churches  which  had  been  hallowed  by  the  struggles 
and  triumphs  of  the  Reformation. 

German  Protestantism  cannot  complain  that  Ra- 
tionalism was  the  work  of  acknowledged  foes ;  but  is 
bound  to  confess,  with  confusion  of  face,  that  it  has 
been  produced  by  her  own  sons;  and  that  English 
Deism  and  French  Atheism  were  welcomed,  and  trans- 
muted into  far  more  insidious  and  destructive  agencies 
than  they  had  ever  been  at  home.  The  Rationalists 
did  not  discard  the  Bible,  but  professed  the  strongest 
attachment  to  it.  They  ever  boasted  that  their  sole 
object  was  the  defence  and  elevation  of  it.  "  Because 
we  love  it,"  they  said,  "  we  are  putting  ourselves  to  all 
this  trouble  of  elucidating  it.  It  grieves  us  beyond 
measure  to  see  how  it  has  been  suffering  from  the 
vagaries  of  weak  minds.  We  are  going  to  place  it  in 
the  hands  of  impartial  Reason ;  so  that,  for  once  at 
least,  it  may  become  plain  to  the  masses.  We  will  call 
in  axl  the  lano-ua^es  and  sciences  to  aid  us  in  exhumins; 
its  long-buried  treasures,  in  order  that  the  wayfaring 
man,  though  a  fool,  may  appropriate  them.     And  as  to 


28  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

the  church,  who  would  say  aught  against  our  venerable 
mother?  We  love  her  dearly.  We  confess,  id  deed, 
that  we  love  the  green  fields  and  gray  mountain -rocks 
better  than  her  Sabbath  services  ;  nor  do  we  have  much 
respect  for  her  Sabbath  at  all.  But  we  cherish  nei 
memories,  and  are  proud  of  her  glory.  Yet  the  people 
do  not  understand  her  mysteries  well  enough.  They 
do  not  love  her  as  much  as  we  do.  Therefore  we  will 
stir  them  up  to  the  performance  of  long-neglected  du- 
ties. They  ignorantly  cling  too  proudly  to  her  forms 
and  confessions.  But  we  will  aid  them  to  behold  her 
in  a  better  light.  We  know  the  true  path  of  her  pros- 
perity, for  do  you  not  see  that  we  have  been  born  and 
bred  within  her  dear  fold  ?  Let  everybody  follow  us. 
We  will  bring  you  into  light."  Had  outspoken  enemies 
of  the  church  and  inspiration,  though  doubly  gifted  and 
multiplied  in  number,  set  themselves  to  the  same  de- 
structive work  that  engaged  the  labors  of  these  so-called 
friends,  they  could  not  have  inflicted  half  the  injury. 
They  had  razed  to  the  ground  tower  after  tower  of  the 
popular  faith  before  their  designs  were  discovered.  And 
yet  we  must  do  them  the  credit  to  say  that  they  did 
not  intend  to  do  the  harm  that  they  eventually  accom- 
plished. But  human  agencies  achieve  their  legitimate 
results  without  regard  to  the  motives  that  give  them 
impulse.  No  doubt,  many  a  Rationalist,  as  he  looked 
back  from  his  death-bed  on  the  ruin  to  which  he  had 
contributed,  trembled  with  astonishment  at  the  poison 
ous  fruit  of  his  labors.  Christ  beheld  a  broader  field 
than  we  can  see,  when  he  said,  "  A  man's  foes  shall  be 
they  of  his  own  household." 

This  religious  exterior  has  been  a  powerful  auxiliary 
to  the  growth  of  Rationalism.  In  the  earlier  stages  of 
its  history,  every  utterance  regarding  the  authenticity 


INTRODUCTION.  29 

of  any  books  of  Scripture  was  carefully  guarded  The 
boldest  stroke  that  this  species  of  skepticism  has  made 
has  beeu  a  recent  one,  Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus  ;  but 
that  work  was  only  the  outgrowth  of  long  doubt,  and 
the  honest,  frank  expression  of  what  a  certain  class  of 
Rationalists  had  been  burning  to  say  for  a  century 
Parents  who  sent  their  sons  to  the  university  to  listen 
to  such  men  as  Semler,  Thomasius,  and  Paulus,  had  not 
the  remotest  idea  that  institutions  of  such  renown  for 
learning  and  religion  were  at  that  very  time  the  hotbeds 
of  rank  infidelity.  Even  the  State  cabinets  that  con- 
trolled the  professorial  chairs  could  not  believe  for  a 
lone  time  that  men  who  had  been  chosen  to  teach 
theology  were  spending  all  their  power  in  corrupting 
the  religious  sentiment  of  the  land.  Large  congrega- 
tions were  sometimes  startled  with  strange  announce- 
ments from  their  pastors,  to  the  effect  that  the  supposed 
miraculous  dividing  of  the  Ked  Sea  was  only  occasioned 
by  certain  natural  forces  of  wind  and  tide ;  that  all  the 
rest  of  the  Old  Testament  miracles  were  pure  myths  ; 
and  that  many  parts  of  the  New  Testament  were  writ- 
ten at  a  later  time  and  by  other  authors  than  those 
whose  names  are  usually  associated  with  them.  "  Het- 
erodoxy," was  whispered.  But  the  reply  was,  "  Better 
have  heterodoxy  than  these  miserable  disputes  on  Elec- 
tion and  the  Lord's  Supper,  to  which  we  have  been 
compelled  to  listen  almost  ever  since  Luther  laid  his 
body  down  to  die."  Fledgling  theologians  would  come 
home  from  the  university,  and  read  aloud  to  the  family- 
group  the  notes  of  lectures  which  they  had  heard  during 
the  last  semester.  The  aged  pair,  looking  up  in  wonder, 
would  say,  "  The  good  and  great  doctors  of  our  Ref- 
ormation never  taught  such  things  as  these."  But  their 
sons  would  answer,  "  Oh,  the  world  has  grown  much 


30  HISTORY    OF    RATIOjS'ALISM. 

wiser  since  their  day.  New  discoveries  in  philosophy 
and  science  have  opened  new  avenues  of  truth,  and  our 
eyes  are  blessed  that  we  see,  and  our  ears  that  we  hear. 
Just  wait  until  we  get  into  the  pulpit,  and  wre  will  set 
the  people  to  thinking  in  a  new  way.'1  Thus  the 
enemy  was  sowing  tares  while  the  church  was  dream 
ing  of  a  plenteous  harvest. 

Rationalism  was  very  adroit  in  its  initial  steps.  Its 
method  of  betrayal  was,  Judas-like,  to  sit  in  friendly 
intercourse  beside  its  victim,  and  afterwards,  when  the 
fulness  of  malevolent  inspiration  had  come,  to  give  the 
fatal  kiss  in  the  presence  of  enemies.  The  people  did 
not  know  the  ills  they  were  about  to  suffer  until  de- 
liverance was  well-nigh  hopeless.  Had  Rationalism 
begun  by  laying  down  its  platform  and  planning  the 
work  of  proof,  the  forces  of  the  opposition  might  have 
been  organized.  But  it  commenced  without  a  platform, 
and  worked  long  without  one.  The  systematic  theol- 
ogy of  Bretschneider  would  by  no  means  be  accepted 
by  the  entire  class  of  Rationalistic  divines.  To  get  a 
fair  conception  of  what  has  been  the  aggregate  sentiment 
of  the  whole  class,  one  must  wander  through  hundreds  of 
volumes  of  exegesis,  history,  philosophy,  and  romance  ; 
and  these  covering  a  space  of  many  years.  Even  when 
you  hold  up  your  treasure,  and  cry  "  Eureka !  "  your 
shrewd  opponent  will  coolly  say  that  you  have  given  a 
false  interpretation,  and  have  drawn  wrong  conclusions, 
— that  his  masters  never  claimed  such  an  absurdity. 
Rationalism  looked  upon  Revelation  as  a  tottering  edi- 
fice, and  set  itself  busily  at  work  to  destroy  the  entire 
superstructure.  But  sometimes  it  is  the  surrounding 
vines  and  trees  that  shake  in  the  autumn  storm,  and 
not  the  building  itself ;  and  often  beneath  the  worm- 
eaten   bark   there   is   a   great    oaken  heart,  which   io 


INTRODUCTION.  31 

arm  is  strong  enough  and  no  axe  sufficiently  keen  to 
cleave. 

Rationalism  lias  been  striving  to  destroy  a  liouso 
which  was  built  upon  a  rock ;  and  if  it  fell  not,  the 
fault  lay  not  in  the  absence  of  ingenuity  and  strength 
of  attack,  but  in  the  undecayed  material  and  deeply- 
grounded  solidity  of  the  structure. 

We  are  not  blind  to  the  extenuating  circumstances 
that  are  adduced  for  Rationalism.  The  motives  of  its 
founders  seemed  pure  enough,  for  these  men  held  their 
life-task  to  be  the  purification  of  faith  from  the  miscon- 
ceptions of  inspiration,  and  the  deliverance  of  the 
church  from  the  thraldom  of  stiff  formularies.  Some 
of  their  successors  held  that  their  labors  were  only 
philosophical,  and  hence  could  not  affect  theology. 
They  all  claimed  relationship  with  the  Reformers,  and 
with  the  good  and  great  of  all  ages.  Bretschneider 
says  that  Luther  talked  of  miracles  as  only  fit  for  the 
ignorant  and  vulgar,  as  apples  and  pears  are  for  children. 

Paul  us  tries  to  prove  the  great  Saxon  a  Rationalist 
by  the  following  circumstance.  The  Elector  of  Bran- 
denburg having  asked  Luther  if  it  were  true  that 
he  had  said  he  should  not  stop  unless  convinced  from 
Scripture,  received  this  reply  :  "  Yes,  my  lord,  unless 
I  am  convinced  by  clear  and  evident  reasons !  "  It  was 
a  favorite  view  of  the  Rationalists  that  the  Reformation 
had  been  produced  by  Reason  asserting  her  rights  ;  and 
it  was  then  an  easy  step  to  take,  when  they  claimed  as 
much  right  to  use  Reason  within  the  domain  of  Prot- 
estantism as  their  fathers  possessed  when  within  the 
pale  of  Catholicism. 

But  there  were  wide  points  of  difference  between 
the  Reformers  and  Rationalists.  The  former  would 
return  to  the  spirit  and  letter  of  the  Word  of  God, 


32  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

while  the  latter  did  not  hesitate  to  depait  from  both. 
The  former  accepted  the  Bible  as  it  is,  making  Faith 
its  interpreter ;  the  latter  would  only  construe  its  utter- 
ances as  Reason  would  dictate. 

With  the  Reformers  there  was  a  conflict  between 
the  Bible  and  the  Roman  church,  but  harmony  between 
Reason  and  the  Bible ;  hence  these  two  homogeneous 
elements  should  be  united  and  the  rebellious  one  for- 
ever discarded.  But  with  the  Rationalists  there  was 
an  irreconcilable  difference  between  Reason  and  Reve- 
lation, and  the  latter  must  be  moulded  into  whatever 
shape  the  former  chose  to  mark  out.  The  Reformers 
celebrated  the  reunion  of  both ;  but  the  Rationalists 
never  rested  as  long  as  there  was  any  hope  of  putting 
asunder  those  whom  they  believed  God  had  never 
joined  together.  But  the  later  Rationalists,  least  of  all, 
could  claim  consanguinity  with  the  Reformers.  Howr 
could  they  who  banished  miracles  from  the  Scriptures 
and  reduced  Christ  to  a  much  lower  personality  than 
even  the  Ebionites  declared  him  to  be,  dare  to  range 
themselves  in  the  circle  of  the  honored  ones  who  had 
unsealed  the  long-locked  treasures  of  inspiration,  and 
declared  that  Christ,  instead  of  being  an  inferior  Socra- 
tes, was  divine,  and  the  only  worthy  mediator  between 
God  and  man?  After  we  accept  every  reasonable 
apology  for  this  destructive  skepticism  there  will  still 
be  found  a  large  balance  against  it.  There  are  four  con- 
siderations which  must  always  be  borne  in  mind  when 
we  would  decide  on  the  character  of  any  development 
of  religious  doubt  and  innovation.  1.  The  necessity  for 
its  origin  and  development ;  2.  Its  point  of  attach  ;  & 
TJie  spirit  with  which  it  conducts  its  warfare  ;  and  4. 
The  success  which  it  achieves. 

Let  us  see  how  Rationalism  stands  the  test  of  these 


INTRODUCTION.  33 

criteria.  It  must  be  confessed  that  the  German  Prot- 
estant church,  both  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed,  called 
loudly  for  reinvigoration.  But  it  was  Faith,  not  Rea- 
son, that  could  furnish  the  remedy.  The  Pietistic  in- 
fluence was  gaining  ground  and  fast  achieving  a  good 
work ;  but  it  was  reprobated  by  the  idolaters  of  Rea- 
son, and  the  tender  plant  was  touched  by  the  fatal  frost. 
Had  Pietism,  with  all  its  extravagances,  been  fostered 
by  the  intellect  of  the  pulpits  and  universities  it  would 
have  accomplished  the  same  work  for  Germany  in  the 
seventeenth  that  the  Wesleys  and  Whitefield  wrought 
in  England  in  the  eighteenth  century.  There  was  no 
call  for  Rationalism,  though  its  literary  contributions 
to  the  church  and  the  times  will  eventually  be  highly 
useful ;  but  they  were  ill-timed  in  that  season  of  remark- 
able religious  doubt.  It  was  the  warmth  of  the  heart, 
and  not  the  cold  logic  of  the  intellect  that  could  rejuve- 
nate the  church. 

Nor  do  we  find  the  position  of  Rationalism  to  be 
any  better  when  we  call  to  mind  that  it  really  ac- 
knowledges no  hallowed  ground.  It  attacked  the  most 
endeared  doctrines  of  our  faith,  and  applied  its  enginery 
to  those  very  parts  of  our  citadel  which  we  would  be 
most  likely  to  defend  the  longest.  Had  it  contented 
itself  with  the  mere  discussion  of  minor  points,  with 
here  and  there  a  quibble  about  a  miracle  or  a  prophecy, 
we  could  excuse  many  of  its  vagaries  on  the  score  of 
enthusiasm.  But  its  premiss  was,  "We  will  accept 
nothing  between  the  two  lids  of  this  Book  if  our  Rea 
son  cannot  fathom  it."  Hence,  all  truth,  every  book 
of  the  Bible,  even  the  sacraments  of  the  church,  came 
in  for  their  share  of  discussion  and  pruning.  In  this 
respect  Rationalism  takes  rank  as  one  of  the  most  cor- 
rupt tendencies  of  infidelity  which   appears  anywhere 


34  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

upon  the  page  of  ecclesiastical  history.  But  do  we  find 
its  spirit  mild  and  amiable  ?  Some  of  the  Rationalists 
were  naturally  men  of  admirable  temperament,  but  this 
was  no  effect  of  their  faith.  The  most  lamentable  lea 
ture  of  this  whole  system  was  the  ruthless  character  of 
its  warfare.  The  professions  of  love  for  the  Scriptures 
and  the  church,  which  we  so  often  meet  with  in  the 
writings  of  the  early  Rationalistic  divines,  were  soon  laid 
aside.  The  demon  of  destruction  presided  over  the 
storm.  And  the  work  of  ruin  was  rapid,  by  forced 
marches  and  through  devious  paths, — in  the  true  mili- 
tary style.  When  the  hour  of  fight  came  there  was  no 
swerving.  Men  full  of  the  spirit  of  a  bad  cause  will 
sometimes  fight  as  valiantly  as  others  for  a  good  one ; 
but  it  is  then  that  God  determines  the  victor.  The 
evangelical  Christians  of  Protestant  Germany  saw  their 
banner  captured  by  their  foes.  And  it  was  their  foes 
who  gave  the  first  fire  ;  but  they  will  not  be  so  fortunate 
in  the  last  encounter.  We  challenge  Deism  and  even 
Atheism  itself,  to  furnish  proof  of  a  more  malignant 
antipathy  to  some  of  the  cardinal  doctrines  of  the  com- 
mon faith  of  Christendom  than  Rationalism  has  pro- 
duced in  certain  ones  of  its  exponents,  and  which  we 
shall  strive  to  expose  in  future  pages  of  this  work. 
Some  of  the  Rationalists  were  John-like  in  all  they  did, 
save  when  they  discussed  the  holy  truths  of  inspiration. 
Then  they  were  possessed  by  the  evil  spirit.  Nowhere 
can  we  find  a  more  deplorable  example  of  the  disastrous 
effects  of  a  false  creed  on  the  human  character.  It  is 
an  infallible  law  of  our  nature  that  the  mind,  not  less 
than  the  body,  becomes  depraved  by  an  impure  diet. 
Many  persons  have  been  permanently  injured  by 
reading  the  Brief e  uber  den  Rationalismus,  and  other 
-■ 


INTRODUCTION.  35 

works   which  Rationalism   has   published  against   the 
doctrires  of  Revelation. 

As  far  as  the  completeness  and  speed  of  the  work 
of  Rationalism  are  concerned  we  shall  find  that  it  ranks 
with  the  most  rapid  and  destructive  errors  that  have 
ever  risen  in  conflict  with  the  church.  Instead  of  striv- 
ing to  build  up  a  land  that  had  so  long  been  cursed 
with  the  blight  of  Papacy,  and  had  not  yet  been  re- 
deemed a  full  century,  this  evil  brought  its  quota  of 
poison  into  the  university,  the  pulpit,  and  the  house- 
hold circle.  Nor  did  it  cease,' as  we  shall  see,  until  it 
corrupted  nearly  all  the  land  for  several  generations. 
To-day  the  humblest  peasant  who  steps  on  our  shore  at 
Castle.  Garden  will  stare  in  wonder  as  you  speak  of  the 
final  judgment,  the  immortality  of  the  soul,  and  the 
authenticity  of  the  Scriptures.  Naturalism  could  not 
live  thus  long  in  Italy,  nor  Deism  in  England,  nor  the 
blind  Atheism  of  the  Encyclopaedists  in  France  ;  neither 
in  either  land  was  the  work  of  destruction  so  complete. 

But  the  church  has  proved  herself  able  to  depose 
many  corruptions  of  her  faith;  yet  this  attack  upon  Iter 
faith  she  has  still  to  vanquish  thoroughly.  It  is  not 
works  on  the  evidences  of  Christianity  that  she  needs 
for  the  consummation  of  her  great  aim  ;  and  we  trust 
that,  by  the  divine  blessing,  the  inquiry  into  the  va- 
garies of  Reason  upon  which  we  are  now  entering  will 
not  be  without  its  effect  upon  the  young  mind  of 
America.  Our  task  is  simply  to  lift  the  finger  of  warn- 
ing against  the  increasing  influx  of  Rationalistic  ten- 
dencies from  France  and  England ;  which  lands  had 
first  received  them  from  Germany.  One  of  our  great  dan- 
gers lies  in  permitting  Reason  to  take  our  premises  and 
build  her  own  conclusions  upon  them.  There  is  an  in- 
timate union  between  theology  and  philosophy;  and 


36  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

anything  less  than  the  pursuit  and  cultivation  of  a 
sound  philosophy  will  endanger  our  theology.  Tenny 
son  gives  a  beautiful  word  of  advice  when  he  says : 

"  Hold  thou  the  good :  define  it  well : 
For  fear  divine  Philosophy 
Should  push  beyond  her  mark,  and  be 
Procuress  to  the  Lords  of  Hell." 


CHAPTER    I. 

CONTROVERSIAL  PERIOD  SUCCEEDING  THE  REFORMATION. 

A  work  of  such  magnitude  as  the  Reformation  could 
not  easily  be  consummated  in  one  generation.  The 
real  severance  from  the  Roman  Catholic  church  was 
effected  by  Luther  and  Melanchthon;  but  these  men 
did  not  live  long  enough  to  give  the  symmetry  and 
polish  to  their  work  which  it  really  needed.  Unfor- 
tunately, their  successors  failed  to  perform  the  necessary 
task.  But  lofty  as  our  ideas  of  the  Reformation  should 
be,  we  must  not  be  blind  to  the  fact  that  German 
Protestantism  bears  sad  evidences  of  early  mismanage- 
ment. To-day,  the  Sabbath  in  Prussia,  Baden,  and  all  the 
Protestant  nationalities  is  hardly  distinguishable  from 
that  of  Bavaria,  Austria,  Belgium,  or  France.  But  a 
few  bold  words  from  Martin  Luther  on  the  sanctity  of 
that  day,  as  the  Scriptures  declare  it,  would  have  made 
it  as  holy  in  Germany  as  it  now  is  in  England  and  the 
United  States.  Another  error,  not  so  great  in  itself  as 
in  the  evils  it  induced,  was  the  concessions  which  Prot- 
estantism granted  to  the  civil  magistrate.  The  friendly 
and  heroic  part  which  the  Elector  of  Saxony  took  in 
the  labors  of  the  Reformers,  made  it  a  matter  of  defer- 
ence to  vest  much  ecclesiastical  authority  in  the  civil 
bead.  But  when,  in  later  years,  this  confidence  was 
abused,  it  was  not  so  easy  to  alter  the  conditions  of 


38  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

power.  We  see  in  this  very  fact  one  of  the  underlying 
causes  of  the  great  Rationalistic  defection.  The  indi- 
vidual conscience  was  allowed  almost  no  freedom  at 
certain  periods.  The  slightest  deviation  from  the  mere 
expression  of  doctrine  was  visited  with  severe  penalty. 
Strigel  was  imprisoned ;  Hardenberg  was  deposed  and 
banished  ;  Peucer  doomed  to  ten  years'  imprisonment ; 
Cracau  put  to  death  on  the  slightest  pretences ;  and 
JIuber  was  deposed  and  expatriated  for  a  mere  varia 
tion  in  stating:  the  Lutheran  doctrine  that  none  are 
excluded  from  salvation.1 

There  were  several  causes  which  contributed  to  the 
intemperate  controversies  that  sprang  up  immediately 
after  the  Reformation.  The  Reformers  were  involved 
in  serious  disputes  among  themselves.  Had  Luther 
and  Zwinglius  never  uttered  the  word  Consubstan- 
tiation  they  would  have  gained  multitudes  to  the 
cause  they  both  loved  so  dearly.  Many  other  ques- 
tions, which  unfortunately  occupied  so  much  public 
attention,  caused  minute  divisions  among  those  who 
should  have  stood  firm  and  united  in  that  plastic  period 
of  the  great  movement.  But  it  is  to  the  numerous  con  • 
fessions  of  faith  that  we  must  attribute  most  of  these 
controversies.  Perhaps  the  grave  character  of  the  mas- 
ter-points at  issue  with  Romanism  demanded  these 
closely-succeeding  expressions  of  doctrinal  opinion  ;  but 
we  question  if  the  advantage  was  not  much  less  than 
the  outlay.  First  of  all  came  Melanchthon's  celebrated 
Augsburg  Confession,  in  1530.  The  Roman  Catholics 
replied  by  their  Confutation,  which,  in  turn,  was  an- 
swered by  Melanchthon  in  the  Apology  of  the  Confes 
sion.  Luther  followed  in  1536-37  with  his  Articles 
of  Smalcald,  and  still  later  by  his  two  Catechisms.     In 

1  Pusey,  Historical  Inquiry,  pp.  16,  17. 


CONTROVERSIAL    PERIOD.  39 

1577  came  the  Formula   Concordice,  and  in  1580  the 
symbolical  canon  entitled  Liber  Concordice. 

Amid  this  mass  of  doctrinal  opinion  in  which  many 
conflicting  points  were  easy  enough  to  find,  it  wa»s  no 
small  task  to  know  what  to  accept.  The  air  was  filled 
1  with  the  sounds  of  strife.  Those  who  had  fought  so 
steadfastly  against  Papacy  were  now  turning  their 
weapons  in  deadly  strife  against  each  other. 

The  very  names  by  which  Church  History  has 
recorded  the  memory  of  these  strifes  indicate  the  real 
littleness  of  many  of  the  points_jn_g[uestion.  The  An- 
tinomwn~TJontroversy  originated  with  John  Agricola 
during  Luther's  life-time.  Agricola,  in  many  severe 
expressions,  contended  against  the  utility  of  the  Law ; 
though  Mosheim  thinks  he  intended  to  say  nothing 
more  than  that  the  ten  laws  of  Moses  were  intended 
chiefly  for  the  Jews,  and  that  Christians  are  warranted 
in  laying  them  aside.  The  Adiaphoristic  Controversy 
was  caused  by  the  difference  between  the  moderate  views 
of  Melanchthon  and  the  more  rigid  doctrines  of  the 
orthodox  Lutherans.  We  have  next  the  controversy 
between  George  Major  and  Nicolas  Amsdorf,  as  to 
whether  good  works  are  necessary  to  salvation,  or 
whether  they  possess  a  dangerous  tendency.  The 
Synergistic  Controversy  considered  the  relations  of 
divine  grace  and  human  liberty.  The  dispute  between 
Victoriu  Strigel  and  Matthias  Flacius  was  on  the  na- 
ture of  Original  Sin.  Then  we  have  the  Osiandric 
I  Controversy,  on  the  relation  of  justification  to  sanctifi- 
jcation  ;  and  the  Crypto- Calvinistic  Controversy,  con 
cerning  the  Lord's  Supper,  which  extended  through  the 
Palatinate  to  Bremen  and  through  Saxony.  The 
Formula  Concordiw  thus  sums  up  the  Lutheran  contro- 
versies :     1.  Against  the  Antinomians  insisting  on  the 


40  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

preaching  of  the  law.  2.  Justification  as  a  declarative 
act,  against  Osiander ;  good  works  are  its  fruits.  3. 
Synergism  is  disavowed,  but  the  difficulty  left  indefinite. 
4.  Adiaphora  are  admitted,  but  in  times  of  trial  de 
clared  to  be  important  5  Consubstantiation,  and 
ubiquity  of  Christ's  body. 

The  Reformed  or  Calvinistic  church  was  likewise 
engaged  in  doctrinal  disputation,  but  there  was  more 
internal  unity.  Hence,  while  Calvinism  was  rooting 
itself  in  England,  Scotland,  and  Holland,  Lutheranism 
was  spending  itself  in  internal  strife. 

The  Syncretistic  Controversy  was  remarkable  on 
account  of  the  great  men  who  engaged  in  it  and  the 
noble  purpose  which  caused  it.  It  arose  from  an  at- 
tempt to  reconcile  all  the  disputants  under  the  Apostles' 
Creed. 

George  Calixtus  was  the  chief  actor  in  the  move- 
ment. He  was  a  most  cultivated  theologian.  But,  like 
so  many  of  his  fellow  countrymen,  whose  merits  have 
not  yet  been  appreciated  by  the  English-speaking  people, 
he  is  little  known  to  our  readers  of  ecclesiastical  his- 
tory. He  applied  himself  first  to  the  study  of  the 
Church  Fathers,  poring  over  their  voluminous  produc- 
tions with  all  the  zeal  of  an  enthusiast.  He  was  eager 
to  gain  an  insight  into  contemporaneous  theology  as  it 
was  believed  and  practised  by  all  the  sects.  He  con- 
cluded that  he  could  gain  his  object  only  by  travel  and 
personal  observation.  Consequently,  he  commenced  a 
tour  through  Belgium,  England,  France,  and  various 
parts  of  Germany.  Nor  did  he  hasten  from  one  place 
to  another,  but  continued  a  length  of  time,  in  order  to 
become  imbued  with  the  local  spirit,  make  the  ac- 
quaintance of  the  most  illustrious  men,  hold  conversa- 
tions with  them,  and  commit  his  thoughts  to  writing. 


GEOKGE   CALIXTUS.  41 

Ou  his  return  he  commenced  the  labors  of  a  professor 
of  theology  at  Helmstedt.  Thus,  few  men  ever  brought 
to  their  aid  more  extensive  acquirements  than  Calixtus. 
Besides  the  advantages  he  derived  from  his  travels,  he 
was  possessed  of  strong  and  brilliant  natural  talents. 
He  was  bold  and  striking  in  his  style ;  had  great 
originality  of  conception,  and  remarkable  logical  acute- 
ness.  Yet  he  received  but  little  justice  from  his  gener- 
ation ;  for  almost  everything  he  wrote  was  made  the 
theme  of  mad  disputes  and  violent  abuse. 

The  controversies  of  the  period  made  a  j>rofound 
impression  on  the  mind  of  Calixtus.  The  anger  and 
personality  with  which  they  were  conducted  Avere 
sufficient  proof  to  him  of  the  little  service  they  were 
able  to  contribute  to  either  the  improvement  of 
theology  or  the  religious  growth  of  the  people.  To 
reconcile  the  various  sects  was  the  dream  of  his  whole 
life.  Referring  to  his  early  desires  in  this  direction,  he 
thus  wrote  in  later  years  :  "  I  was  cogitating  methods, 
even  at  that  early  age,  for  mitigating  the  feuds  and  dis- 
sensions of  Christians.  .  .  .  One  thing,  however, 
is  clear,  that  if  men's  minds  were  not  bound  by  preju- 
dices, they  would  remit  a  great  deal  of  rigor."  x  Those 
were  sincere  words,  too,  which  he  said  on  beholding 
the  rancor  of  sectarianism  :  "  If  I  may  but  help  towards 
the  healing  of  our  schisms,  I  will  shrink  from  no  cares 
and  no  night-watchings ;  no  effort  and  no  dangers ; 
.  nay,  I  will  never  spare  either  my  life  or  my 
blood,  if  so  be  I  may  purchase  the  peace  of  the  church. 
For  nothing  can  ever  be  laid  upon  me  so  heavy  but 
that  I  would  undertake  it,  not  only  with  readiness,  but 
also  with  gladness."  The  abuses  of  preaching,  then 
prevalent,  were  also  a  theme  of  intense  sorrow  to  him. 

1  Responmm  Moguntinis  Theologis,  p.  129. 


42  HISTORY   OF    RATIONALISM. 

What  some  of  them  were  may  be  easily  gathered  from 
a  passage  in  his  course  of  lectures  on  the  Four  Evangel- 
ists to  the  students  of  Helmstedt.  "  It  is  evident,"  he 
says,  "that  in  every  interpretation  the  chief  heed  is  to  be 
given  to  the  literal  sense.  In  every  address  to  the 
people  this  must  be  made  the  principal  point — so  to 
explain  the  text  of  Scripture  that  men  may  understand 
what  the  Holy  Spirit  chiefly  and  primarily  intends  to 
teach  by  it.  Inasmuch,  too,  as  the  language  is  ad- 
dressed to  the  people,  it  is  the  part  of  prudence  to  de- 
cide what  words  may  suit  their  capacity.  We  should 
strive  to  state  the  fact  on  the  doctrine  itself  in  words  as 
fitting  and  simple  as  possible,  and  (omitting  all  con- 
troversial subtleties)  to  prove  the  truth  as  far  as  it  is 
necessary  for  salvation  to  be  known,  by  a  few  words 
of  Scripture : — few,  that  they  may  not  escape  the 
memory  of  the  hearers  ;  evident  and  convincing,  lest  the 
proofs  seem  doubtful,  and  the  minds  of  the  more  intelli- 
gent be  left  in  suspense  and  be  disturbed  to  their  very 
exceeding  harm.  The  words  of  the  Fathers  (if  used  by 
way  of  evidence)  should  be  used  sparingly  and  with 
caution  ;  lest  the  ignorant  should  confound  the  Apostles 
and  Prophets  with  the  Fathers,  and  persuade  themselves 
that  all  have  equal  authority.  For  it  is  to  be  borne 
in  mind  that  sermons  are  preached  not  so  much  for  the 
benefit  of  the  learned  as  for  the  sake  of  the  people 
generally ;  that  they  may  be  rightly  instructed  in  the 
doctrine  of  salvation  and  of  Christian  morals.  In  the 
meantime  we  must  do  our  best  to  satisfy  all;  that  the 
simple  be  not  left  without  needful  teaching ;  the  more 
acute  find  no  want  of  force  and  argument ;  nor  the 
learned  charge  the  preacher  with  a  pride  of  knowledge 
foreign  to  the  occasion  and  not  always  thorough."  x 

1  Cone.  Evang.,  in  Henke.  vol.  I.  p.  274,  note. 


PRINCIPLES    OF    CALIXTUS.  43 

In  his  first  controversial  work,  Chief  Points  of  the 
Christian  Religion,  Calixtus  gave  expression  to  many 
solid  thoughts,  which  subsequently  produced  an  abun- 
dant harvest.  His  Tlieological  Apparatus  was  written 
for  young  ministers,  and  designed  to  meet  the  imme- 
diate necessities  of  the  times.  But  it  is  to  his  great 
work,  the  Desire  and  Effort  for  Ecclesiastical  Concord, 
that  we  must  turn  to  find  the  true  man  spending  his 
greatest  power  toward  the  unification  of  Christians. 
In  terms  of  communion,  he  contends,  we  must  distin- 
guish between  what  is,  and  what  is  not,  essential  to 
salvation.  In  all  that  relates  to  the  Christian  mysteries 
we  must  content  ourselves  with  the  quod  and  not  dis- 
pute about  the  quo  modo.  In  stating  these  mysteries 
we  should  use  the  simplest  language.  There  is  a  nat- 
ural brotherhood  of  men,  and  this  should  bind  them 
together  in  matters  of  religion.  We  must  love  all 
men,  even  idolaters,  in  order  to  save  them.  The  Jews 
and  Mohammedans  stand  nearer  to  us  than  they,  and 
we  should  cherish  affection  also  for  them.  Those  who 
are  most  closely  united  to  us  are  all  who  believe  that 
they  can  be  saved  only  by  the  merits  of  Christ.  All 
who  thus  recognize  the  saving  power  of  Christ  are 
members  of  his  body,  brothers  and  sisters  with  him. 
We  should  live,  therefore,  as  members  of  one  family, 
though  adhering  to  different  sects. 

But  we  must  not  be  neutral.  Every  one  should 
join  the  church  to  which  his  own  conscientious  convic- 
tions would  lead  him.  Yet  when  we  do  this,  we  must 
jove  all  who  think  differently.  Those  who  have  been 
martyrs  for  the  Christian  faith  were  in  the  right  path  ; 
we  cannot  do  better  than  to  follow  them  in  love  and 
doctrine.      The   outpouring   of    the   Spirit   would   be 


44  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

meagre  indeed  if  the  church  existed  for  the  stringent 
Lutherans  alone.1 

But  the  intense  desire  of  Calixtus  to  unite  the 
various  Christian  bodies  was  poorly  rewarded  by  the 
sympathy  of  his  contemporaries.  He  was  charged  with 
religious  indifference  because  he  looked  with  mildness 
on  those  who  differed  from  him.  Though  a  strict 
Lutheran,  he  was  accused  of  secretly  favoring  the  Re- 
formed church ;  and  Arianism  and  Judaism  were  im- 
puted to  him,  because  he  thought  that  the  doctrine  of 
the  Trinity  was  not  revealed  with  equal  clearness  in  the 
Old  and  New  Testaments  !  When  he  affirmed  that  the 
epithets  Lutheran,  Reformed,  and  Romanist  should  not 
destroy  the  idea  of  Christian  in  each,  he  was  foully  vili- 
fied for  opening  the  gate  of  heaven  to  the  abandoned 
of  all  the  earth.  A  friendly  man  said  that  he  was  "  a 
good  and  venerable  theologian,"  and  for  this  utterance 
the  offender  was  subjected  to  a  heavy  tine.  The  friends 
of  Calixtus  were  termed  by  one  individual  "  blood- 
hounds and  perjurers."  Another  declared  that  "  he 
tuned  his  lyre  to  Judaizers  and  Arianizers  and  Ro- 
manizers  and  Calvinizers,  and  that  he  showed  a  spirit 
so  coarse  and  shameless  that  never  the  like  had  been 
before."  Still  another  compared  him  to  Julian  th« 
Apostate. 

But  previous  controversies  and  the  ever-increasing 
points  of  divergence  had  so  estranged  the  different 
churches  that  the  labors  of  Calixtus  to  unite  them 
proved  unavailing.  His  influence  was  lessened  because 
of  the  disputes  into  which  his  bold  undertaking  led 
him.  But  he  quickened  national  thought,  turned  the- 
ologians to  looking  deeper  into  the  Scriptures  than 
had  been  the  practice  since  the  Reformation,  and  estab- 

'  Dowding,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Calixtus,  pp.  313-315. 


PROTESTANTISM    ENDANGERED.  45 

lished  the  difference  between  the  essential  and  non- 
essential in  matters  of  faith.  The  cause  £  his  failure 
to  unite  the  discordant  church  was  his  fearless  attack 
on  popular  error.  But  his  disappointment  detracts 
nothing  from  the  grandeur  of  his  work  ;  and  his  name 
is  one  which  will  not  be  denied  its  meed  of  praise  when 
theological  peace  is  once  more  restored  to  Germany. 
No  generation  can  duly  value  a  character  whose  life 
is  not  in  consonance  with  the  prevailing  spirit  of  that 
generation.  As  the  military  hero  must  not  expect  his 
greenest  laurels  in  time  of  peace,  and  as  the  sage  must 
not  dream  of  praise  in  an  uncultivated  period,  so  must 
such  men  as  George  Calixtus  wait  for  a  coming  day 
whose  untainted  atmosphere  will  be  in  harmony  with 
their  own  pure  life  and  thoughts. 

The  spirituality  of  the  German  church  having 
suffered  materially  from  the  controversies  of  which  we 
have  spoken,  the  beneficial  results  of  the  Reformation 
were  greatly  endangered  by  them.  The  German  version 
of  the  Bible  had  been  an  incalculable  blessing  to 
the  masses;  and  the  commentaries  written  by  the 
Reformers  and  their  immediate  successors  gave  prom- 
ise of  a  wide-spread  Scriptural  knowledge.  But 
the  religious  disputes  distracted  the  mind  from  this 
necessary  department  of  thought,  and  neutralized  much 
of  the  good  which  would  otherwise  have  been  lasting. 
The  danger  in  which  the  Protestant  church  now  stood 
was  great.  Sectarian  strife,  formalism,  neglect  of  the 
high  functions  of  the  pastorate,  and  other  flagrant  evdls 
of  the  day,  made  the  devout  and  far-seeing  tremble  for 
the  cause  which  had  engaged  the  great  minds  of  the 
Reformation  era.  What  could  be  done  ?  A  steady  and 
gigantic  effort  was  necessary  to  be  made  or  the  great 
Reformation  would   die   by  its  own   hand.     Happily 


46  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

there  were  men,  though  somewhat  removed  at  first  from 
public  observation,  whom  God  was  intending  to  employ 
as  conservative  agents.  Often  in  the  history  of  the 
church,  when  there  has  been  no  prospect  of  success  and 
progress,  and  when  the  votaries  of  error  seemed  every- 
where triumphant,  God  was  secretly  preparing  the  in 
strumentality  which,  Joseph-like,  would  in  due  time 
perform  the  work  of  preservation  and  restoration. 
There  have  been  pessimists  who  were  ever  ready  to 
cry  :  "  Lord,  they  have  killed  thy  prophets,  and  digged 
down  thine  altars ;  and  I  am  left  alone,  and  they  seek 
my  life."  But  when  the  hour  of  crisis  came,  God's  an- 
swer was  heard  :  "  I  have  reserved  to  myself  seven 
thousand  men  who  have  not  bowed  the  knee  to  Baal." 
This  was  true  at  the  present  period,  for  there  were  a 
few  men  whose  services  were  destined  to  be  of  great 
value  to  the  Protestantism  of  Europe. 

We  mention  first  of  all  the  prince  of  mystics,  Jacob 
Boehme,  shoemaker  of  Gorlitz.  Gieseler  chooses  to 
stigmatize  him  with  "  contempt  of  all  Christianity  of 
the  letter  and  of  all  scientific  theology ;  "  but  men  can 
only  be  measured  by  the  standard  of  their  age.  Did 
they  serve  their  generation  well  ?  If  so,  we  grant  them 
all  honor  for  their  work.  Let  Boehme  be  tested  by 
this  method,  and  we  do  not  fear  the  result.  We  are 
not  unmindful  of  many  of  his  absurd  notions,  of  the 
fanaticism  of  his  followers — for  which  he  is  not  in  the 
least  chargeable — and  of  the  many  extravagances  scat- 
tered through  his  twenty-eight  treatises.  But  that  he 
intended  well,  served  his  church  and  his  Master,  led 
thousands  to  self-examination,  taught  his  nation  that 
controversy  was  not  the  path  to  success  or  immortality, 
his  whole  career  proves  beyond  confutation. 

His  life,  from  beginning  to  end,  is  a  marvel.     He 


BOEHME    AT    WORK.  47 

was  born  of  poor  peasant  parentage  in  1575  ;  and,  after 
being  taught  to  read  and  write,  was  apprenticed  to 
a  shoemaker.  His  time  was  divided  between  reading 
his  Bible,  going  to  church,  making  shoes,  and  taking 
care  of  the  cow.  But  in  that  boy's  heart  there  were 
as  deep  a  conscientiousness,  imperturbable  patience, 
purity  of  soul,  and  love  of  God  as  can  be  found  in  a 
like  period  of  spiritual  dearth.  Having  reproved  his 
master  one  day,  he  was  dispatched  on  his  apprentice- 
pilgrimage  somewhat  sooner  than  he  had  anticipated. 
It  has  been  truthfully  said  of  him  that  his  characteristic 
lay  in  his  pneumatic  realism.  His  was  ecstacy  of  the 
loftiest  type  ;  but  with  him  it  was  something  almost 
tangible,  real,  and  akin  to  actual  life.  A  late  author, 
the  lamented  Vaughan,  thus  fancies  him :  "  Behold  him 
early  in  his  study,  with  bolted  door.  The  boy  must 
see  to  the  shop  to-day,  no  sublunary  care  of  awl  or 
leather,  customers  and  groschen,  must  check  the  rushing 
flood  of  thought.  The  sunshine  streams  in  emblem,  to 
his  high-raised  phantasy,  of  a  more  glorious  light.  As 
he  writes,  the  thin  cheeks  are  flushed,  the  gray  eye 
kindles,  the  whole  frame  is  damp,  and  trembling  with 
excitement.  Sheet  after  sheet  is  covered.  The  head- 
long pen,  too  precipitate  for  caligraphy,  for  punctuation, 
for  spelling,  for  syntax,  dashes  on.  The  lines  which 
darken  down  the  waiting  page  are,  to  the  writer,  fur- 
rows, into  which  heaven  is  raining  a  driven  shower  of 
celestial  seed.  On  the  chapters  thus  fiercely  written  the 
eye  of  the  modern  student  rests,  cool  and  critical,  wearily 
scanning  paragraphs,  digressive  as  Juliet's  nurse,  and 
protesting,  with  contracting  eyebrow,  that  this  easy 
writing  is  abominably  hard  to  read."  * 

He  was  four  times  in  ecstacy.     He  writes  of  him- 

1  Hours  with  the  Mystics,  vol.  2,  p.  67. 


48  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

self :  "  I  have  never  desired  to  know  anything  of  divine 
mystery ;  much  less  have  I  wished  to  seek  or  find  it. 
I  sought  only  the  heart  of  Jesus  Christ,  that  there 
I  might  hide  myself  from  the  anger  of  God  and  the 
grasp  of  the  devil.  And  I  have  besought  God  to  grant 
me  his  grace  and  Holy  Spirit,  that  he  would  lead  me 
and  take  from  me  everything  that  would  tend  to 
alienate  me  from  him ;  that  I  might  lose  my  own  will 
in  his,  and  that  I  might  be  his  child  in  his  son  Jesus 
Christ.  While  in  this  earnest  seeking  and  longing,  the 
door  has  opened  before  me,  so  that  I  have  seen  and 
learned  more  in  a  quarter  of  an  hour  than  I  could  have 
gained  in  many  years  at  great  schools.  .  .  .  When 
I  think  why  it  is  that  I  write  as  I  do,  I  learn  that  my 
spirit  is  set  on  fire  of  this  spirit  about  which  I  write. 
If  I  w  ould  set  down  other  things,  I  cannot  do  it :  a 
living  fire  seems  to  be  kindled  up  within  me.  I  have 
prayed  God  many  hundreds  of  times,  weeping,  that  if 
my  knowledge  did  not  contribute  to  his  honor  and  the 
improvement  of  my  brethren,  he  would  take  it  away 
from  me,  and  hold  me  only  in  his  love.  But  I  found 
that  my  weeping  only  made  the  inner  fire  burn  all  the 
more ;  and  it  has  been  in  such  ecstacy  and  knowledge 
that  I  have  composed  my  works." 

The  Aurora  was  his  greatest  production.  His  ex- 
treme modesty  forbade  the  publication  of  it ;  and  it 
was  first  discovered  accidentally  in  manuscript  by  a 
nobleman  who  was  visiting  him.  Of  the  literary  char- 
acter of  his  works  Schlegel  says  :  "  If  we  consider  him 
merely  as  a  poet,  and  in  comparison  with  other  Chris- 
tian poets  who  have  attempted  the  same  supernatural 
themes — such  as  Klopstock,  Milton,  or  even  Dante, — 
we  shall  find  that  in  fulness  of  emotion  and  depth  of 
imagination  he  almost  surpasses  them.     And  in  poetic 


JOKN    ARtTDT.  49 

expression  and  single  beauties  he  does  not  stand  a  whit 
behind  them.  The  great  intellectual  wealth  of  the 
German  language  has  rarely  been  revealed  to  such  an 
extent  in  any  age  as  in  this  writer.  His  power  of 
imagery  flowed  from  an  inexhaustible  fountain."  His 
last  words  declared  the  inward  life  of  the  man,  "  0  Lord 
of  Sabaoth  save  me  according  to  thy  pleasure  !  O  thou 
crucified  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  have  mercy  on  me,  and 
take  me  to  thy  kingdom !  Now  I  am  going  into 
Paradise !  " 

John  Arndt  was  not  the  subtle  mystic  that  Boehme 
was,  and  his  writings  are  subjected  to  fewer  misappre- 
hensions. The  service  he  rendered  the  church  and 
the  cause  of  truth  was  important ;  and  his  influence  is 
still  felt  upon  the  practical  life  of  the  German  people. 
While  yet  young  he  no  sooner  became  awakened  to  his 
spiritual  condition  then  he  saw  the  great  religious  de- 
fects of  his  day.  He  first  yielded  to  the  prevalent  pas- 
sion for  the  study  of  chemistry  and  medicine ;  but, 
through  a  severe  illness,  he  was  subsequently  led  to 
give  himself  to  the  service  of  God.  But  few  works 
have  obtained  the  celebrity  which  his  True  Christianity 
has  enjoyed,  not  only  while  its  author  lived,  but  at 
every  period  since  that  time.  He  was  induced  to  write 
it  on  account  of  the  controversial  and  formal  spirit 
which  petrified  the  church.  In  a  letter  to  Duke  Au- 
gustus, in  1621,  he  thus  explained  his  motives  :  "  I  have 
first  endeavored  to  withdraw  the  minds  of  students  and 
preachers  from  this  disputation  and  contentious  theol- 
ogy which  threatens  to  bring  upon  us  once  more  the 
evil  of  a  scholastic  theology.  Another  reason  that  has 
impelled  me  to  this  course  is  my  strong  desire  to  incline 
dead  Christians  to  become  fruitful.  A  third  one  is  to 
lead  people  from  the  study  of  human  theory  and  science 


50  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

to  the  real  exercise  of  faith  and  devotion.  A  fourth 
reason  is  to  show  what  that  true  Christian  life  is  which 
harmonizes  with  vital  faith — and  what  that  is  which 
Paul  meant  when  he  said,  '  I  live;  yet  not  I,  but  Christ 
liveth  in  me.' " 

Immediately  after  the  publication  of  the  True 
Christianity  it  found  a  hearty  welcome.  The  learned 
and  ignorant  took  equal  pleasure  in  its  living  thoughts. 
Next  to  the  Bible  and  Kempis'  Imitation  of  Christ,  it 
has  been  circulated  more  widely  on  the  Continent  than 
any  other  book.  It  was  translated  into  all  the  Eu- 
ropean languages,  and  missionaries  rendered  it  into 
heathen  tongues.  The  Roman  Catholics  received  it, 
and  claimed  it  as  one  of  their  treasures.  When  Pro- 
fessor Anton  visited  the  Jesuit  Library  at  Madrid,  in 
1687,  he  inquired  for  the  best  ascetical  writer.  The 
librarian  produced  a  copy  of  Arndt's  True  Christianity, 
which,  though  without  preface  or  introduction,  had  this 
simple  expression  on  the  first  page  :  "  This  booh  is  more 
edifying  than  all  others? 

The  spirit  with  which  Arndt  wrote  all  his  works  was 
calm  and  heavenly.  He  possessed  that  beautiful  Mo- 
ravian type  of  character  which  defied  persecution  by 
its  submission,  love,  tenderness,  and  energy.  In  referring 
to  his  many  enemies  he  wrote  on  one  occasion,  "  I  am 
delighted  to  suffer,  and  I  would  endure  a  thousand 
times  more,  sooner  than  bury  my  talent."  He  was 
somewhat  ascetical  in  temperament,  but  he  differed  from 
all  that  class  of  thinkers  by  the  clearness  of  his  appre 
ciation  of  the  wants  of  his  time  and  his  unwearied  ef- 
forts to  meet  them  successfully.  He  did  not  escape 
the  censure  of  mysticism  ;  for  that  was  more  than 
any  devout  spirit  in  that  age  could  expect.  Some  of 
the  most  learned  took  umbrage    at    his   ardent   senti- 


JOKN    GERHARD.  51 

ments  and  bitter  complaint  at  the  impiety  of  his 
times.  The  opposition  to  him  was  well  organized,  and 
continued  long  after  his  death.  Even  at  the  end  of 
the  seventeenth  century  we  find  various  writers  re- 
plying to  his  celebrated  work.  But  all  the  blows  of 
his  adversaries  have  only  tended  to  deepen  the  love  of 
the  people  for  his  name  and  writings.  It  is  not  an  an- 
frequent  occurrence  for  minds  in  Germany,  even  at 
the  present  day,  to  be  led  to  accept  the  truths  of  the 
Gospel  by  the  reading  of  the  True  Christianity.  What 
Thomas  a  Kempis  was  to  the  pre-Refor  matron  age, 
Fenelon  to  France,  and  Jeremy  Taylor  to  England, 
John  Arndt  has  been  to  the  Protestant  countries  of  the 
Continent  for  the  last  three  centuries.  Superintend- 
ent Wagner  only  gave  expression  to  the  world's  real 
conviction  when  he  wrote  of  him  :  "  Vir  placidus,  can- 
didus,  pius  et  doctus? 

A  personal  friend  and  spiritual  son  of  Arndt,  John 
Gerhard,  followed  closely  in  his  footsteps.  He  was 
possessed  of  the  same  general  characteristics  which 
we  have  traced  in  connection  with  the  two  preceding 
names.  His  love  was  boundless,  his  spirit  unruffled,  his 
piety  deep  and  lasting.  He  was  more  serviceable  in 
some  respects  to  the  interests  of  the  orthodox  church 
than  any  other  theologian  of  that  time.  Like  Arndt 
he  had  been  inclined  to  the  study  of  medicine,  but  a 
dangerous  sickness  turned  his  mind  to  religious  contem- 
plation and  to  the  study  of  theology.  His  mental  ca- 
pacities had  been  cast  in  a  great  mould.  He  grasped 
whatever  he  undertook  with  gigantic  comprehension 
His  attainments  were  so  rapid  that  at  the  age  of 
twenty-four  he  received  the  degree  of  doctor  of  di- 
trinity ;  and,  somewhat  later,  was  the  most  famous  and 
admired    of   all    the    professors  of  the  university    of 


52  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Jena.  His  influence  was  such  that  princes  placed 
themselves  before  him  for  his  counsel,  and  the  highest 
ecclesiastical  tribunals  deemed  themselves  honored  in 
receiving  a  share  of  his  attention.  His  works  embrace 
the  departments  of  exegesis,  doctrine,  and  practical  re 
ligion. 

But  it  was  chiefly  the  two  former  branches  of  the- 
ology that  engaged  his  attention.  In  his  Mcegeticai 
Explication  of  Particular  Passages  he  accomplished  an 
important  service  for  the  church.  He  introduced  all 
the  leading  doctrines  of  inspiration  into  this  work,  and 
discussed  the  merits  of  contemporary  controversy  in 
connection  with  them.  He  explained  those  almost  in- 
definable terms  which  had  been  so  variously  employed 
by  the  schoolmen,  and  summed  up  the  literature  on  the 
points  in  question.  His  style  was  prolix  but  his  con- 
clusions carried  great  weight  with  them.  As  a  speci- 
men of  his  tedious  method,  he  begins  his  discussion  of 
original  sin  with  the  questions,  "  Is  there  such  a  thing 
as  original  sin  ?  Then,  what  is  it  ?  What  is  its  sub- 
ject ?  How  is  it  continued?"  Many  other  inquiries 
are  made  in  the  same  manner,  but  it  is  only  after  a  hun- 
dred pages  have  been  passed  over  that  he  gives  his  own 
definition  of  it.  But  we  should  not  smile  at  such  lati- 
tude of  style  when  we  remember  the  literary  standard 
of  those  times.  The  German  language  was  then  in  its 
I  plastic  state  ;  and  by  far  the  greater  portion  of  writers 
had  been  much  more  interested  in  gaining  points  than 
rounding  periods.  It  is  almost  a  hopeless  task  to  wade 
through  the  ridiculously  lengthy  terms  of  the  seven- 
teenth century.  But  it  may  be  said,  in  their  defence, 
that  the  method  of  verbose  composition  was  not  with- 
out some  appearance  of  utility.  The  intelligence  of  the 
reader  could  not  be  relied  upon  to  such  an  extent   as 


ANDREA.  53 

now,  and  the  eager  eyes  of  so  many  opponents  made  it 
necessary  to  guard  every  word  of  importance  with  a 
wall  of  sentences. 

We  have  now  to  mention  a  fourth  actor  in  the  great 
drama  of  these  dangerous  times,  John  Valentine  Andrea, 
His  mind  was  not  of  the  serious  tone  that  marked  the 
other  writers  of  whom  we  have  spoken.  That  he  look- 
ed deeply,  calmly,  and  wisely  into  the  surrounding 
evils  no  one  can  doubt.  Every  work  he  wrote  estab- 
lished this  fact.  But  the  method  which  he  adopted  to 
cure  them  was  of  a  totally  different  order  from  that 
employed  by  others.  His  personal  history  bears  all  the 
evidences  of  romance.  He  was  the  son  of  a  poor 
widow,  who,  having  spent  all  her  property  to  give  him 
an  education,  found  her  boy  at  the  conclusion  of  his 
studies  desirous  of  making  the  usual  academic  tour. 
She  has  but  a  pittance  left,  so  she  puts  into  his  hand 
twelve  kreutzer,  and  a  rusty  old  coin,  as  a  pocketpiece. 
Her  eyes  follow  him  until  they  are  blinded  in  a  flood  of 
tears.  Years  pass  on  and  Valentine  comes  home,  hav- 
ing travelled,  by  dint  of  self-denial  and  perseverance, 
over  the  most  interesting  portions  of  the  Continent. 
He  returns  to  the  fatherland  and  settles  quietly  down 
as  an  orthodox  Lutheran  pastor. 

It  is  now  that  the  evils  of  his  generation  loom  up 
before  him  in  terrible  blackness.  He  attacks  them 
by  satire.  He  sits  down  and  writes  a  little  book,  ded- 
icated to  all  the  great  men  of  Europe,  and  entitled, 
The  Discovery  of  the  Brotherhood  of  the  HonorabU 
Order  of  the  Holy  Cross.  This  work  aims  to  show  that 
there  had  once  lived  a  certain  Christian  Rosenkranz. 
He  was  a  man  of  remarkable  learning,  and  communi- 
cated his  knowledge  to  eight  disciples,  who  lived  with 
him,  in  a  house  called  the  Temple  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 


54  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

This  building  has  come  to  light,  and  behold  the  uncor- 
rupted  body  of  Kosenkranz,  who  has  been  dead  a  hun- 
dred and  twenty  years !  The  various  disciples  whom 
he  left,  and  who  are  scattered  throughout  Germany, 
claim  to  be  true  Protestants,  and  call  upon  all  men  to 
help  them  in  their  efforts  to  promote  learning  and  re- 
ligion. They  possess  great  secrets  and  the  world  ought 
to  know  them.  They  are  perfectly  at  home  in  bottling 
the  elixir  of  life,  and  have  been  in  possession  of  the 
philosopher's  stone  a  long  time.  Their  great  object 
is  to  benefit  their  fellow  creatures.  Who  will  follow 
them? 

Such  was  the  burden  of  Andrea's  little  book.  The 
consequence  was,  it  set  all  Germany  on  fire.  People 
never  dreamed  for  a  moment  that  it  was  a  burlesque  on 
the  times.  Thousands  left  their  labor  to  follow  the  ad- 
vice of  the  earnest  disciples  of  Rosenkranz.  On  seeing 
that  he  had  caused  some  mischief,  Andrea  wrote  book 
after  book  affirming  that  his  previous  one  on  Christian 
Rosenkranz  was  a  pure  fiction  intended  to  teach  a  use- 
ful lesson.  But  nobody  believed  him ;  the  people  were 
sure  that  they  could  not  be  so  sadly  deceived.  His 
first  work  was  the  only  one  that  was  heartily  received ; 
and  multitudes  ran  mad  after  the  fabulous  knowledge 
of  the  famous  master  and  his  imaginary  disciples.  But 
when  the  land  awoke  to  the  real  idea  of  Andrea,  the 
reaction  was  tremendous.  Perhaps  no  satire,  not  even 
the  Laus  Stultitice  of  Erasmus,  created  such  a  fury  of 
excitement  as  this  ;  seldom  has  one  been  followed  with 
more  astounding  and  beneficial  results.  We  say  benefi- 
cial from  purpose ;  for  Andrea  succeeded  in  attracting 
the  popular  mind  from  its  old  habits  of  controversy. 
This  was  his  great  service.  As  a  man  he  was  of  unex- 
ceptionable life   and   ardent   sympathies.      He   passed 


PREPARATORY    WORKERS.  55 

peacefully  to  his  rest  after  uttering  the  words,  "  It  is 
our  joy  that  our  names  are  written  in  the  Book  of  Life." 
Thus  were  these  devoted  men  performing  theii 
great  mission  of  improving  the  life  of  the  Church.  We 
shall  soon  see  how  low  the  current  of  that  life  was,  and 
how  great  the  burden  placed  upon  them.  Each  one 
had  his  special  endowment,  and  was  eminently  quali- 
fied to  contribute  to  a  more  healthy  religious  tone 
throughout  the  Protestant  lands.  But,  after  all,  their 
•vork  was  only  preparative.  The  culmination  of  their 
labors  was,  in  later  years,  the  great  Pietistic  Reform ; 
and  they  marked  out  the  path  along  which  Spener 
subsequently  passed.  Theirs  was  a  great  part  in  the 
drama  of  providence ;  but  their  achievements  would 
have  accomplished  no  permanent  advantage  had  they 
not  been  succeeded  by  the  triumphs  of  the  Father  of 
Pietism.  It  has  sometimes  been  a  noticeable  part  of  the 
divine  plan  in  our  great  struggles  with  the  powers  of 
darkness,  that,  when  the  heroes  of  truth  fall  at  their 
post,  the  contest  does  not  need  to  rage  long  before 
others,  with  hearts  of  equal  fervor  and  weapons  more 
brightly  polished,  take  their  places  in  the  advancing 
lines.  What  wonder,  then,  that,  by  and  by,  the  moun- 
tains echo  back  the  shouts  of  victory ! 


CHAPTER    II. 

RELIGIOUS  CONDITION  OF  THE  PROTESTANT  CHURCH  AT  THE 
PEACE  OF  WESTPHALIA— 1648. 

Theological  strife  was  the  precursor  of  the  all-de- 
vastating Thirty  Years'  War.  The  forces  had  been  long 
at  work  before  the  fearful  carnage  began.  The  princi- 
ples involved  were  of  such  moment  that,  whatever 
power  took  part  in  the  struggle,  did  so  with  all  the 
energy  with  which  it  was  endowed.  The  Emperor  Ru- 
dolph II.  had,  in  1609,  guaranteed  to  Bohemia  the  lib- 
erty of  Protestantism,  but  his  successor,  Matthias,  vio- 
lated the  pledge  by  preventing  the  erection  of  a  Protest- 
ant church  edifice.  The  imperial  councillors  were  cast 
out  of  the  window ;  the  priests  driven  off ;  and  the 
Elector  Frederick  V.  of  the  Palatinate,  chosen  King  of 
Bohemia.  But  the  Protestants  were  overcome.  Ferdi- 
nand II.  tore  up  the  imperial  pledge ;  led  back  the 
priests  into  authority,  and  expelled  the  Protestant  clergy 
Certain  concessions  having  been  previously  made  to  the 
Protestants,  Ferdinand  II.  issued  in  1629  his  infamous 
Edict  of  Restitution,  by  which  the  Protestants  were  to 
deliver  up  all  the  monasteries  confiscated  after  the 
Treaty  of  Passau.  Calvinists  were  excluded  from  the 
Peace ;  and  the  Catholic  States  were  granted  uncondi- 
tional liberty  to  suppress  Protestautism  in  their  heredi- 
tary countries.1     The  fearful  carnage  commenced  in  bit- 

1  Kurtz,  Church  History,  vol.  11,  p.  177. 


THIRTY   YEARS'    WAR.  57 

ter  earnestness.  No  war  was  ever  carried  on  with  more 
desperation  ;  none  can  be  found  more  repulsive  in  bru- 
tality, or  more  beautiful  in  fortitude  and  sublime  in 
bravery.  Great  sanguinary  contests  often  receive  their 
appellation  from  the  influences  that  produce  them,  or  the 
nations  conducting  them  ;  but  this  one,  extending  from 
1618  to  1648,  combined  all  these  elements  to  such  an 
extent  that  the  historian  finds  it  most  convenient  to  de- 
nominate it  by  the  period  of  its  duration.  It  was  the 
bloody  mould  in  which  the  continent  of  Europe  received 
its  modern  shape.  It  extended,  with  but  slight  excep- 
tions, over  the  entire  extent  of  Germany.  Some  por- 
tions of  that  singularly  picturesque  country  were  per- 
mitted to  hope  for  immunity  from  its  devastations ;  but, 
by  and  by,  they  too  were  visited ;  and  all  that  re- 
mained were  a  decimated  population  and  smoking 
ruins. 

Pastoral  work  was  necessarily  neglected.  Large 
sections  of  the  country  were  deprived  of  all  spiritual 
cultivation  and  oversight.  The  children  were  deprived 
of  both  their  natural  protectors  and  those  guardians 
whom  the  church  had  provided  for  them.  Out  of  ten 
hundred  and  forty-six  pastors  in  Wiirtemberg,  for  ex- 
ample, only  three  hundred  and  thirty  were  left  by  the 
ravages  of  war.  Food  could  hardly  be  provided  for  the 
Seminary  students,  few  as  these  were ;  for  nearly  all  the 
young  men  had  been  compelled  to  yield  to  the  repeated 
conscriptions.  The  princes  themselves  were  in  many 
cases  driven  from  their  jurisdiction ;  and  when  the 
prince  was  gone  the  church  was  usually  disorganized 
Duke  Eberhard  of  Wiirtemberg  and  many  of  the 
Rhenish  rulers  were  compelled  to  seek  an  asylum  in 
Strasburg.     The  Margrave  of  Baden-Durlach  was  a  ref- 


58  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

ugee  to  Switzerland ;  Dukes  Adolph  Frederic  I.  and 
John  II.  of  Mecklenburg  fled  to  Liibeck.1 

The  desolation  caused  by  this  protracted  war  baffles 
all  description.  No  writer  has  been  competent  for  it. 
Schiller  found  it  a  task  to  which  even  his  fervid 
imagination  and  glowing  diction  could  not  measure. 
Wherever  it  went  it  left  destruction  in  its  path.  The 
population  of  Bohemia  was  reduced  from  three  millions 
to  seven  hundred  and  eighty  thousand.  Only  a  fiftieth 
part  of  the  inhabitants  of  the  Rhine-lands  were  left 
alive.  Saxony  lost  nine  hundred  thousand  of  her  citi- 
zens within  the  brief  space  of  two  years.  The  city  of 
Augsburg  could  number  only  eighteen  thousand  out  of 
her  enterprising  population  of  eighty  thousand.  In 
1646  alone,  Bavaria  saw  more  than  one  hundred  of  her 
thriving  towns  laid  in  ashes ;  while  little  Hesse  lost 
seventeen  cities,  forty-seven  castles,  and  four  hundred 
towns. 

The  cruelty  which  characterized  some  of  the  partici- 
pants in  this  war  may  be  conceived  from  the  awful  scene 
of  the  siege  of  Magdeburg ;  a  picture  for  which,  says 
Schiller,  "  History  has  no  speech,  and  Poetry  no  pencil." 
"  Neither  childhood,  nor  age,"  another  author  affirms, 
"  nor  sex,  nor  rank,  nor  beauty  were  able  to  disarm  the 
conqueror's  wrath.  Wives  were  mishandled  in  the  arms 
of  their  husbands,  daughters  at  the  feet  of  their  fathers. 
Women  were  found  beheaded  in  a  church,  whilst  the 
troopers  amused  themselves  by  throwing  infants  into 
the  flames,  or  by  spearing  sucklings  at  their  mothers' 
breasts.  '  Come  again  in  an  hour,'  was  Tilly's  only  re- 
ply when  some  of  his  officers  (utterly  horrified  at  what 

1  Tholuck,  Das  Kirchliche  Leben  des  Siebzehnten  Jahrhunderts.  Erste 
AbtTieilung.  For  much  information  in  the  present  chapter  we  are  greatly 
indebted  to  this  valuable  repository. 


THIRTY   YEARS1    WAR.  59 

they  saw)  besought  him  to  put  a  hand  upon  this  bath  of 
blood : — '  Come  again  in  an  hour  and  I  will  see  what  I 
can  do.  The  soldier  must  have  something  for  his  labor 
and  risk.'  With  unchecked  fury  did  these  horrors  go 
forward,  till  smoke  and  flame  set  bounds  to  plunder. 
The  city  had  been  fired  in  several  places ;  and  a  gale 
spread  the  flames  with  rampant  speed.  In  less  than 
twelve  hours  the  town  lay  in  ashes  ;  two  churches,  and 
some  few  huts  excepted.  Scarcely  had  the  rage  of  the 
fire  slackened,  when  the  troops  returned  again  to  grope 
for  plunder.  Horrible  was  the  scene  which  now  pre- 
sented itself.  Living  men  crept  out  from  under 
corpses ;  lost  children,  shrieking,  sought  their  parents  ; 
infants  were  sucking  the  dead  breasts  of  their  mothers. 
More  than  six  thousand  bodies  were  thrown  into  the 
Elbe,  before  the  streets  could  be  made  passable ;  whilst 
an  infinitely  larger  number  were  consumed  by  the  fire. 
Thirty  thousand  persons  are  supposed  to  have  per- 
ished." 1 

At  the  outset  of  the  war,  and  at  many  times  during 
its  continuance,  the  Protestants  fought  with  but  little 
apparent  prospect  of  success.  But  their  heroic  zeal  con- 
tinued unabated  until  it  was  crowned  with  triumph. 
The  peace  of  Westphalia,  which  concluded  the  protract- 
ed struggle,  secured  the  abolition  of  the  oppressive  De- 
cree of  1635;  granted  legal  rights  to  the  Protestant 
churches ;  established  Lutheranism  in  Central  Germany, 
Norway,  Denmark,  Sweden,  and  Livonia;  recognized 
the  Swiss  and  Dutch  Kepublics  ;  and,  under  certain  con- 
ditions, allowed  future  changes  of  religion  by  princes 
and  people.2 

The  religious  effect  of  the  first  few  years  of  this  san- 

1  Dowding,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Calixtus,  pp.  153-154. 
*  H.  B.  Smith,  D.  D..  History  of  Church  of  Chri»t  in   Chronological 
Talks,  pp.  56-61. 
6 


60  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

guinary  period  was  beneficial.  There  were  indications 
of  more  seriousness  in  common  life,  and  a  deeper  love 
of  truth  among  the  thinking  circles.  The  people  mani- 
fested a  disposition  to  trust  in  the  Divine  arm  for  de- 
liverance from  their  sorrows ;  and  this  new  confidence 
developed  itself  particularly  in  benefactions  for  the  im- 
poverished and  young.  But  as  the  war  progressed  and 
peace  seemed  farther  off  with  every  new  year,  the  heart 
of  the  people  relaxed  into  coldness,  distrust,  and  des- 
peration. Thus,  dark  as  was  the  picture  of  religious 
life  before  the  outbreak  of  hostilities,  it  was  darker  still 
during  their  progress  and  at  their  close.  So  literally 
was  this  the  case  that  Kahnis  declares  its  termination  to 
have  been  the  beginning  of  the  reign  of  secularism. 
He  says:  "Up  to  the  period  of  the  Thirty  Years'  War 
religion  was  the  chief  moving  power  of  the  time.  The 
question  regarding  the  confession  prevailed  over  every- 
thing, and  even  secular  questions,  that  they  might  ex- 
cite interest  and  be  carried,  were  compelled  to  clothe 
themselves  in  the  garb  of  religion.  But  the  result  of 
the  Thirty  Years'  War  was  indifference,  not  only  to  the 
confession,  but  to  religion  in  general.  Ever  since  that 
period  secular  interests  decidedly  occupy  the  foreground, 
and  the  leading  power  of  Europe  is  France." 1 

It  shall  now  be  our  business  to  inquire  into  that 
dwarfed  vitality  which  Kahnis  elevates  so  high  as  to  de- 
nominate "  religion."  We  believe  that,  in  all  the  course 
of  ecclesiastical  history  on  the  Continent,  no  period  of 
equal  intelligence  is  marked  by  the  same  degree  of  re- 
ligious coldness  and  petrifaction.  Theology  was  a  spe- 
cial  sufferer.  The  most  useful  departments  were  neg- 
lected, while  the  least  essential  were  raised  to  superla- 
tive importance.     Andrea  places  the  following  language 

1  History  of  German  Protestantism,  p.  21. 


ECCLESIASTICAL    DECLENSION.  61 

on  the  neglect  of  the  study  of  church  history,  in  the 
mouth  of  Truth :  "  History,  since  she  is  exiled  with  me, 
readily  consents  to  be  silent  and  laughs  at  the  expe- 
rience of  those  who,  because  they  can  but  relate  their 
exploits  from  the  A.  B.  C.  school  to  the  Professor's  chair 
that  is,  from  the  rod  to  the  sceptre,  dream  that  they  are 
in  possession  of  a  compendium  of  the  whole  world. 
Hence  their  city  is  to  them  a  compendium  of  the  world, 
their  class  book  a  library,  their  school  a  monarchy,  their 
doctor's  cap  a  diadem,  their  rod  of  office  a  lictor's  staff, 
each  scholastic  rule  an  anathema :  in  short  everything 
appears  to  them  exaggerated.  Oh  !  the  hapless  human 
learning  that  is  shut  up  in  these  scholastic  Athens,  that 
whatever  offences  may  everywhere  besides  be  committed 
by  ignorance,  all  the  severest  punishments  are  in  store 
for  these  alone  to  overwhelm  it." 

Again,  in  his  ClrrU-tian&polis,  or  ideal  Christian  state, 
he  says  :  "  Since  the  inhabitants  of  Christianopolis  value 
the  church  above  everything  else  in  this  world,  they  are 
occupied  in  her  history  more  than  in  any  other.  For  since 
this  is  the  ark  which  contains  those  who  are  to  be  saved, 
they  prefer  to  busy  themselves  about  it  more  than  about 
all  the  waters  of  the  deluge.  They  relate  then  by  what 
immense  mercy  of  God  this  soul  flock  was  brought  to- 
gether, received  into  covenant,  formed  by  laws  enforced 
by  his  word ;  by  what  weak  instruments  it  was  ex- 
tended, by  what  mighty  engines  attacked,  by  what  man- 
ifest aid  defended  ;  what  blood  and  prayers  its  safety 
had  cost ;  amid  what  anger  of  Satan  the  standard  of 
the  Cross  triumphed;  how  easily  the  tares  spring  up; 
how  often  its  light  is  contracted  to  a  narrow  space  ;  what 
great  eclipses,  and  how  very  great  and  thick  an  one  it 
suffered  under  Antichrist ;  how  it  has  sometimes  emerged 
from  desperate  circumstances,  and  especially  in  this  our 


02  HISTORY    OF    RATION ALIS31. 

age  under  the  mighty  Luther;  with  what  defilement  and 
spots  it  is  often  stained  ;  how  much  it  is  conversant  with 
the  flesh.  Many  other  such  things  they  have  in  store  ; 
as  also  its  periodical  changes,  aud  the  harmonious  vicis 
situdes  of  its  seasons.  They  diligently  impress  them 
on  the  youth  that  they  may  learn  to  trust  in  God,  to 
mistrust  the  flesh,  to  despise  the  threats  of  the  world,  to 
endure  the  darkness  of  this  age.  And  this  is  right, 
however  others  may  not  even  dissemble  their  neglect  of 
ecclesiastical  history ;  for  how  little  any  knowledge  of 
it  is  now  required  even  from  ecclesiastics,  or  how,  where 
it  is  found,  it  is  sold  cheap  in  comparison  with  a  syllo- 
gism or  two — it  does  not  belong  to  this  place  to  discuss 
more  at  length." 

The  existing  state  of  impiety  may  be  inferred  from 
the  low  estimate  of  childhood.  The  Roman  Catholic 
Church  of  that  day  was  not  so  careful  of  the  indoctri- 
nation of  the  young  as  she  is  at  the  present  time. 
Mathesius  says  that  in  the  twenty-five  years  he  spent 
within  her  fold  he  had  seen  no  case  in  which  the 
catechism  had  been  elucidated,  and  that  he  had  not  once 
heard  it  explained  from  the  pulpit.  Luther  took  great 
pains  to  have  children  and  the  lowest  classes  trained  in 
the  elements  of  religious  knowledge.  His  express  lan- 
guage, in  reference  to  the  catechetical  instruction  of  the 
young  and  ignorant  was,  "  It  is  not  merely  enough  that 
they  should  be  taught  and  counselled,  but  care  must  be 
taken  that,  in  the  answers  returned,  every  sentence 
must  be  evidently  understood."  Bu\  like  so  many  other 
lessons  of  the  great  Reformer,  this  was  not  remembered 
by  his  successors ;  and  in  course  of  time  all  that  the 
youth  and  laboring  classes  could  boast  in  favor  of  their 
doctrinal  training  was  a  smattering  of  contemporary 
controversy.     There  were  sermons  and  expository  lee- 


NEGLECT    OF   THE    YOUNG.  68 

tures  intended  for  children  ;  but  they  were  often  at  unsea- 
sonable hours,  and  of  such  insufferable  dryness  as  to  tax 
the  mind  and  patience  of  maturity.  A  certain  author, 
in  a  catalogue  of  this  class  of  literature,  enumerates 
fifteen  hundred and  ninety  catechetical  sermons  for  the 
young  that  were  directed  solely  against  the  Calvinists  ! 

No  one  is  better  able  to  inform  us,  however,  of  the 
low  state  of  religious  training  than  he  who  labored 
most  for  its  improvement.  Spener's  language,  though 
written  in  reference  to  the  melancholy  prostration 
which  his  own  eyes  beheld,  applies  equally  well  to  the 
very  time  of  which  we  speak  : 

"If  one  were  to  say  that  catechizing  and  the  Chris 
tian  instruction  of  youth  is  one  of  the  principal,  most 
important,  and  most  necessary  of  our  duties,  and  not 
of  less  value  than  preaching,  would  he  not  be  contra- 
dicted or  even  laughed  at  by  many  uninstructed  preach- 
ers, or  by  others  ignorant  of  their  duty,  who  seek  only 
their  own  honor  ;  as  if  such  care  were  too  small  and 
contemptible  for  an  office  instituted  for  more  important 
employment  ?  Yet  such  is  but  the  real  truth.  Mean- 
time this  duty  is  by  many  considered  so  ridiculous  that 
there  are  preachers  who  think  it  degrading  to  their  dig- 
nity to  undertake  it,  or  even  see  that  it  is  diligently 
and  faithfully  performed  by  those  appointed  to  it.  It 
is  no  credit  to  our  evangelical  churches  that  catechetical 
instruction  has  been  so  little  or  not  at  all  thought  of  in 
so  many  places ;  though  even  Luther  recommended  it 
so  strongly,  and  gave  us  so  many  admirable  writings  to 
promote  it  But  now  it  either  does  not  exist  at  all,  or  is 
performed  negligently,  and  thrown  almost  entirely  upon 
schools  and  schoolmasters. 

11  These  duties  should  not  have  been   left  to  school- 
masters ;  for  these  are  almost  wholly  unfit  to  discharge 


64  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

thein  on  account  of  their  own  meagre  attainments.  But 
preachers  should  recollect  that  the  souls  of  the  youth 
are  intrusted  to  them,  and  that  they  must  give  an  ac- 
count of  them.  They  should  therefore  submit  to  this 
as  well  as  to  the  other  duties  of  their  office.  It  is  not 
indeed  anywhere  prescribed  who  among  them  should 
perform  these  duties.  In  places  where  there  are  several 
clergymen,  and  the  pastors  and  superintendents  are 
laden  with  so  many  other  occupations  that  they  cannot 
perform  this  duty,  we  cannot  object  to  its  being  left  for 
the  deacons,  or  for  others  who  may  bave  more  time  for 
it.  In  large  churches  able  catechists  might  be  appointed. 
Superintendents,  however,  and  theologians  in  high  office 
would  not  do  amiss  if  they  would  sometimes  counte- 
nance this  exercise  by  their  presence,  and  even  now  and 
then  perform  it  themselves  in  order  to  encourage  others. 
If  there  were  some  who  would  voluntarily  commence  it 
themselves,  it  would  not  be  interpreted  ill,  oi%  thought  be- 
low their  dignity. 

"  I  have  become  acquainted  with  the  character  of 
most  instructors  of  youth,  and  I  find  that  their  real  aim 
is  not  to  lead  the  soul  of  youth  to  God,  but  their  pay 
also,  that  they  are  chiefly  not  fit  to  impart  a  correct 
knowledge  of  God  since  they  do  not  possess  it  them- 
selves. And  indeed  there  are  very  many  who  have  not 
a  knowledge  even  of  the  letter  of  that  which  is  or  is  not 
to  be  believed ;  much  less  do  they  comprehend  thor 
oughly  and  spiritually  what  is  the  will  of  God  in  faith 
and  its  fruits.  Catechizing  is  as  necessary  to  the  church 
as  any  other  religious  agency  can  be." 

We  have  also  the  important  authority  of  Calixtus* 
on  the  sad  condition  of  the  education  of  the  young. 
'*  The  chief  cause  and  origin  of  the  decay  of  learning," 
says  he,  "now  tending   to  extinction,  (which   may  God 


THEOLOGICAL   LITERATURE   DEFECTIVE.  65 

avert !)  I  hold  for  my  own  part,  to  be  this : — that  the 
younger  children  are  not  well  grounded  in  the  minor 
schools.  Foundations  ought  to  be  laid  there,  which 
might  afterwards  support  the  whole  weight  of  solid 
learning  and  true  erudition.  The  children  ought  to 
learn  from  genuine  authors  the  Greek  and  Latin  lan- 
guages; the  Keys  (as  they  are)  of  those  treasures 
which  preceding  ages  have  laid  up  for  our  use.  And 
they  ought  so  to  learn,  as  to  be  able  to  appreciate  the 
thoughts  of  others  (specially  of  the  best  authors),  and 
to  express  their  own  in  suitable  and  perspicuous  words. 
.  .  .  But  now,  in  many  places,  we  see  the  reverse  of 
all  this.  Before  they  can  speak  (passing  by  preposte- 
rously, the  matters  essential  to  ultimate  success),  the 
boys  are  made  to  proceed,  or  rather  leap,  to  higher  sub- 
jects; 'real'  subjects,  as  we  have  learned  to  call  them. 
Pedagogues  of  this  stamp  seem  to  themselves  learned, 
whilst  they  are  teaching  what  they  have  never  them- 
selves mastered  ;  and  what  their  scholars  neither  under- 
stand, nor  at  their  age  can  understand.  In  the  mean 
time  the  writings  of  those  good  authors,  who,  by  all 
past  ages,  have  been  recognized  as  masters  of  literature 
and  style,  are  struck  out  of  their  hands,  and  they  (the 
schoolmasters)  substitute  their  own  comments ;  disput- 
ing in  a  circle  of  children  about  Anti-Christ  and  the 
doctrine  of  predestination."  l 

The  theological  literature  of  these  times  was  volumi- 
nous and  confused.  A  work  on  an  unimportant  subject 
would  occupy  a  dozen  volumes,  and  then  the  write] 
would  give  his  finishing  touches  with  the  apology  that 
he  had  not  done  justice  to  his  theme.  No  nation  pub- 
lishes to  such  an  extent  as  Protestant  Germany  in  the 
nineteenth  century ;  but  one  cannot  be  adequately  con- 

1  Orationes  Selecta,  Henke,  vol.  1,  pp.  285-286. 


66  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

vinced  of  the  extent  of  the  literary  activity  of  her  the- 
ologians of  the  former  half  of  the  seventeenth  century 
without  loitering  among  the  alcoves  of  her  antiquarian 
bookstores  of  the  present  day.     The  dusty  tomes  tes- 
tify, by  their   multitude  and  care,  to  the  character  of 
the  ecclesiastical  age  that  gave  them  birth.     The  Ger- 
mans do  not  sell  their  old  books  to  the  paper  merchants 
because  they  are  old.     It  is   sacrilege  to  convert  the 
printed  sheet  back  again  to   pulp.     The   libraries  of 
the  universities  are  located   in   those  portions  of  the 
city  where   land  is  cheap  ;    the    catalogue   is  a  small 
library  of  itself.     The  Leipzig  Fair  keeps  much  of  this 
long-printed    literature  before  the  world.     It  changes 
hands,    migrates   to   Tubingen,    Halle,  or   some   other 
book-loving    place ;    passes  through    a   generation    of 
owners,  and  turns  up  in  some  other  spot,  but  little  the 
worse  for  wear.     The  peasant  is  found  at  the  book  auc- 
tion ;  the  professor  considers  it  a  white  day  when  a  re- 
plenished purse  and  the  sale  of  an  old  library  are  si- 
multaneous facts.     And  when  the  hour  arrives,  the  prep- 
arations  are  sometimes  of  the   most   comfortable   and 
leisure-inviting  character.     We  once  attended  an  auction 
in  picturesque  old  Brunswick   which  continued  three 
days ;  and  coffee,  beer,  sandwiches  and  other  refresh- 
ments were  freely  enjoyed  at  frequent  intervals  by  nearly 
all  present.     Every  one  had  along  breathing  spell  when 
the  auctioneer,  or  any  one  of  his  numerous  secretaries, 
sipped  his  coffee  and  replenished  his  pipe. 

We  cannot  affirm  that  there  was  as  much  a  defi- 
ciency of  talent  or  learning  at  the  time  of  which  we 
speak,  as  there  was  of  an  humble,  subdued  religious 
spirit,  and  of  clearness  of  conception,  all  of  which  are 
equally  necessary  to  give  a  high  tone  to  theological 
writing  and  thinking.     Dr.  Pusey  says  of  the  theolo- 


PROLIX   THEOLOGICAL   LITERATURE.  67 

giaus,  that  "  they  were  highly  learned  but  deficient  in  sci- 
entific spirit,  freedom  from  prejudice,  destitute  of  compre- 
hensive and  discriminating  views,  without  which  mere 
knowledge  is  useless."  An  illustration  is  furnished  in  Ca- 
lov's  mammoth  production,  entitled,  Systema  locorum 
Theologicorum  e  -sacra  potissimum  scriptura  etantiqui- 
tate,  nee  non  adversariorum  confessione  doctrinam,  prax- 
ia  et  controversiarum  Jidei,  cum  veterum  turn  imprimis 
vecentiorum  pertractationem  luculentam  exhibens.  The 
author  tried  faithfully  to  redeem  his  pledge  ;  and  though 
he  asserted  that  he  had  aimed  at  conciseness,  his  work  only 
terminated  with  the  twelfth  quarto  volume !  The  subject 
of  the  first  part  was  the  nature  of  Theology,  Religion, 
Divine  Inspiration,  Holy  Scriptures,  and  the  articles  of 
Faith.  He  defined  Theology  to  be,  that  practical 
skill  in  the  knowledge  of  true  religion,  as  drawn  from 
divine  revelation,  which  is  calculated  to  lead  man  after 
the  fall  through  faith  to  eternal  life.  One  of  the  im- 
portant questions  propounded  is : 

"  Are  the  Calvinists  to  be  considered  heretics,  and 
do  they  not  teach  very  dangerous  errors  ?  "  Of  course 
an  affirmative  reply  is  returned  with  cogent  reasons 
therefor.  At  the  end  of  this  part  there  is  a  prolix  re- 
cital of  the  many  errors  of  George  Calixtus  and  his 
followers.  Calov  conformed  to  the  causal  method  of 
composition.  There  were  two  systems  of  arrangement 
in  vogue,  the  causal  and  defining.  Under  the  former 
were  grouped  the  causa?  principales,  et  minus  princi- 
pales,  instrumentales,  ejjicientes,  materiales,  formale-9, 
finales.  Under  the  latter,  a  definition  was  prefixed 
to  each  article,  which  comprised  the  whole  doc- 
trine of  the  church  and  all  the  opposed  heresies.  This 
was  then  redundantly  illustrated  until  the  subject  was 
supposed  to  be  exhausted.     Schertzer,  in  his  doctrinal 


68  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

work,  begins  with  a  definition  of  Christ,  and  occu- 
pies three  quarto  pages  with  one  sentence.  We  ven- 
ture only  its  commencement:  "Christ  is  God-man; 
God  and  man,  born  of  his  heavenly  Father  and  his 
virgin  mother ;  and  Christ  is  according  to  his  humanity 
the  natural  son  of  God,  constant  in  his  unity  to  one 
person,  his  divine  and  human  nature  impeccable."  The 
favorite  class-book  of  those  times  was  Koenig's  Tlieolo- 
gia  positiva  acroamatica  synoptice  tractata  ;  and  it  does 
but  partial  justice  to  this  work  to  say  that  in  dryness 
and  meagreness  it  almost  defies  a  parallel. 

There  was  a  lamentable  decrease  of  exegetical  works 
and  lectures  toward  the  middle  of  the  seventeenth  cen- 
tury. The  Reformation  was  the  signal  for  Scriptural 
study ;  and  the  Reformers  declared  the  word  of  God  to 
be  the  origin  of  their  gigantic  movement.  All  the 
ordinances  of  the  early  Lutheran  Church  were  in  strict 
keeping  with  this  principle.  The  Elector  Augustus,  in 
his  chui'ch  order  of  1580,  established  professors  solely 
for  the  elucidation  of  the  Scriptures.  He  appointed  two 
to  lecture  on  the  Old  Testament,  one  on  the  Pentateuch 
and  the  other  on  the  prophets ;  and  two  on  the  New 
Testament.  His  command  was,  that  they  should  all 
read  the  Scriptures,  as  far  as  they  could,  in  the  same 
languages  in  which  the  prophets  and  apostles  had  writ- 
ten. Many  of  the  universities  had  no  other  professors 
of  theology  than  exegetical  lecturers.  The  languages 
of  the  Bible  were  diligently  studied,  and  great  progress 
was  made  in  their  scientific  understanding. 

But  after  the  rise  of  the  long  and  exciting  controver 
sies  of  which  we  have  spoken,  the  death-blow  was  given 
to  Scriptural  interpretation.  The  method  of  theologi- 
cal study  was  to  spend  the  first  year  in  learning  what 
is  orthodox.     The  second  was  occupied  m  obtaining  a 


DECLENSION    OF   PEEACKLNG.  69 

knowledge  of  controversies ;  the  third  was  devoted  to 
the  Scriptures,  a  more  intimate  knowledge  of  contro- 
versial literature,  and  the  scholastics.  One  day  in  the 
week  was  spent  with  the  Fathers,  Church  Councils,  and 
moral  theology.  The  later  years  were  chiefly  consumed 
in  controversial  practice,  as  a  preparation  for  the  great 
arena.  Francke  as  truthfully  described  these  times  as 
his  own  when  he  said  :  "Youths  are  sent  to  the  univer- 
sities with  a  moderate  knowledge  of  Latin ;  but  of 
Greek  and  especially  of  Hebrew  they  have  next  to 
none.  And  it  would  even  then  have  been  well,  if  what 
had  been  neglected  before  had  been  made  up  in  the  uni- 
versities. There,  however,  most  are  borne,  as  by  a  tor- 
rent, with  the  multitude ;  they  flock  to  logical,  meta- 
physical, ethical,  polemical,  physical,  pneumatical  lec- 
tures and  what  not ;  treating  least  of  all  those  things 
whose  benefit  is  most  permanent  in  their  future  office, 
especially  deferring,  and  at  last  neglecting,  the  study  of 
the  sacred  languages." 

But  while  there  were  many  evidences  of  religious 
torpor  there  were  none  more  marked  and  unmistakable 
than  the  preaching  of  that  time.  The  pulpit  being  an 
invariable  index  of  the  state  of  the  national  heart,  it 
was  not  less  the  case  during  the  present  period.  The 
preaching  was  of  the  most  formal  and  methodical  tex- 
ture. It  assumed  a  rhetorical  and  poetical  appearance ; 
the  people  calling  it  the  Italian  style.  Petrarch  had 
given  shape  to  Italian  thought,  and  through  his  influ- 
ence Germany  became  sated  with  poetic  imagery  and 
overwrought  fancy.  Sagittarius  founded  a  stipend  for 
the  preaching  of  a  yearly  sermon  in  the  University 
Church  "  which  should  be  more  a  practical  illustration 
of  Christian  doctrine  than  of  lofty  speech."  Emblem- 
atical sermons  were  sometimes  delivered  in  lengthy 
series. 


70  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

Christopher  Sunday  descanted  on  the  Perpetual 
Heart- Calendar,  treating  of  genera  and  species,  and  di- 
viding his  themes  into  "Remarkable,  Historical,  and 
Annual  events,  Particular  numbers,  and  the  amounts  of 
Roman  currency,  the  Four  Seasons,  the  Seven  Planets, 
the  Twelve  Heavenly  signs,  and  many  aspects  and  use- 
ful directions."  All  these,  this  divine  claimed,  are  to  be 
found  in  the  Gospel  as  in  a  perpetual  calendar  of  the 
heart.  Another  preacher  adopted  as  his  theme  for  a 
funeral  sermon,  The  Secret  of  Roses  and  Flowers. 
Daniel  Keck  preached  a  discourse  in  1642  from  Romans 
viii.  18,  calling  his  subject  "  The  Apostolic  Syllogism," 
dividing  it  into  subject,  predicate,  and  conclusion.  The 
subject,  suffering,  was  again  divided  into  wicked,  volun- 
tary, stolid  and  righteous  ;  and  these  further  classed  into 
natural,  civil  and  spiritual  suffering. 

A  sermon  on  Zaccheus  from  the  words,  He  was  little 
of  stature,  claims  for  its  theme,  "  The  stature  and  size 
of  Zaccheus."  The  first  division  is,  Tie ;  the  second, 
ivas ;  third,  small  stature.  Application  first,  The  text 
teaches  us  the  variety  of  God's  works ;  second,  it  con- 
soles the  poor ;  third,  it  teaches  us  to  make  amends  for 
our  personal  defects  by  virtue.  Tholuck  well  asks, 
who  would  imagine  that  the  author  of  this  sermon  was 
the  minstrel  of  "  When  the  early  sun  arises,"  "  Oh 
Jesus,  all  thy  bleeding  wounds,"  and  so  many  other 
deeply  earnest  Christian  songs  which  have  touched  the 
hearts  of  many  generations, — the  immortal  Hermann 
von  Koben  ?  A  pastor  of  Wernigerode  preached  from 
Matthew  x.  30.  His  divisions  were,  1 :  Our  hair — its 
origin,  style,  form  and  natural  circumstances.  2 :  On 
the  right  use  of  the  human  hair.  3 :  The  memories, 
admonition,  warning  and  consolation  that  have  come 
from  the  human  hair.     4 :  How  hair  can  be  used  in  a 


DECLENSION    OF   PREACHING.  71 

Christian  way !  A  Brunswick  pastor  commenced  his 
Sabbath  discourse  on  one  occasion  with  the  words,  "  A 
preacher  must  have  three  things ;  a  good  conscience,  a 
good  bite,  and  a  good  hiss;  "  wherefore  his  transition  was 
made  to  the  theme  under  consideration :  "  an  increase 
of  my  salary"  But  it  is  needless  to  continue  illustra- 
tions of  the  almost  universal  dearth  of  preaching.  One 
hardly  knows  whether  to  laugh  at  its  absurdity  or  weep 
over  its  prostitution. 

Andrea's  caustic  pen  revelled  in  satire  at  the  de 
preciation  of  this  important  agency  of  good.  Some  of 
his  ideas  are  by  no  means  ill-timed  in  the  present  cen- 
tury. In  the  Dialogue  of  the  Pulpit  Orator  he  thus 
speaks : 1 

A.  Tell   me  earnestly,  I  pray  you,  what  you   find 
wanting  in  my  present  sermon. 

B.  One  thing  only,  but  that  a  main  point. 

A.  It  cannot  be  in  the  arrangement  ? 

B.  It  was,  I  believe,  according  to  all  the  rules  of 
the  methods. 

A.  Then  the  pronunciation  was  defective  ? 

B.  You  must  speak  as  God  has  made  you  ;  only  you 
must  not  be  an  imitator. 

A.  Then  the  action  was  wrong  ? 

B.  About  that  I  am  indifferent,  if  it  be  only  quiet 
and  not  gesticulatory. 

A.  My  sermon  must  have  been  much  too  long  ? 

B.  If  a  sermon  be  good  it  can't  be  too  long :  a  had 

one  always  is. 

A.  Certainly  I  did  not  produce  illustrations  enough  ? 

B.  You  could  not  have  meant  to  empty  a  basket  of 
quotations. 

A.  Then  I  spoke  too  slow  ? 

1  We  use  Dr.  E.  B.  Pusey's  version  of  Andrea's  words. 


72  HISTORY   OF   RATIONALISM. 

B.  Ha !  In  the  pulpit  we  must  teach,  not  talk  too 
volubly. 

A.  I  should  have  spoken  louder  too  ? 

B.  I  like  the  voice  of  man,  not  the  braying  of 
an  ass. 

A.  Should  I  not  have  used  more  subtle  distinctions  \ 

B.  You  were  there  to  instruct  the  ignorant,  not  to 
dispute  with  heretics. 

A.  Do  then  explain  yourself  more  fully. 

B.  Hear  me :  you  said,  "  I  think  much,  very  much," 
which  was  good,  but  it  only  flowed  through  you  as 
through  a  pipe. 

A.  Indeed! 

B.  Thus,  much  contracted  the  taste  of  the  pipe  and 
savored  accordingly. 

A.  No  good  compliment,  this. 

B.  It  is  the  best  I  can  make.  For  when  you  only 
cast  forth  good  and  wholesome  doctrines,  and  show 
nothing  of  them  expressed  in  your  life  and  manners, 
are  you  not  placed  out  of  yourself  to  speak  one  thing 
and  think  another  ?  You  make  us  believe  that  your 
holy  words  are  only  practised  solemn  words,  without 
any  real  feeling,  just  as  poets  make  bridal  songs  and  fu- 
neral dirges  whenever  called  upon.  You  have  many 
passages  of  Scripture  in  readiness ;  but  they  do  not 
exhort,  strengthen  and  instruct  you,  though  others  die 
with  joy  at  hearing  the  divine  word. 

A.  You  are  severe  upon  me. 

B.  It  is  not  often  the  case  that  the  worst  men 
preach  the  best.  I  wish  but  one  thing :  that  for  the 
future  you  should  say  nothing  but  what  you  express  in 
action  by  your  example,  or  at  least  realize  by  serious 
endeavors  after  obedience  to  God. 

A.  This  is  harsh  enough. 


CLERICAL    IMMORALITY.  7H 

B.  It  is  incomparably  harsher,  however,  to  openly 
contradict  oneself  before  God  both  in  words  and  works, 
and  to  convert  the  divine  service  into  an  empty  clatter 
of  words. 

A.  You  speak  truly. 

B.  And  it  is  just  as  true,  believe  me,  that  a  simple, 
plain  sermon,  exhibited  and  sealed  by  your  life,  is  more 
valuable  than  a  thousand  clever  declamations. 

This  want  of  consistency  between  the  profession  of 
the  clergy  and  their  daily  life  is  indeed  a  dark  picture. 
While  we  would  not  forget  that  there  were  noble  ex- 
ceptions to  all  the  examples  of  declension  that  we  have 
adduced,  and  that  there  were  also  exemplary  illustra- 
tions of  ministerial  devotion  amid  all  the  deformity  of 
these  times,  we  must  maintain  that  the  ministerial  spirit 
which  characterized  this  period  was  not  merely  cold 
and  indifferent,  but  wicked,  and  to  a  great  extent  aban- 
doned. 

The  scenes  of  clerical  immorality  are  enough  to 
chill  one's  blood  even  at  the  distance  of  more  than  two 
centuries.  The  preachers  were  not  licensed  to  preach 
until  they  had  been  graduated  through  a  course  of 
study  extending  from  five  to  ten  years.  According  to 
the  judgment  of  the  Lutheran  Church,  they  must  be 
fitted  intellectually  for  exercising  the  functions  of  their 
office.  But  after  settlement  over  the  churches  of  the 
land,  their  conduct  furnishes  a  sad  proof  that  their  in- 
tellectual qualifications  were  utterly  barren  without  the 
more  important  adjunct  of  spiritual  regeneration.  They 
were  not  converted  men,  as  the  sequel  will  plainly 
show  The  salary  allowed  them  was  usually  small ; 
and  this  is  the  apology  pleaded  for  them  by  their 
friends  ;  but  scanty  salaries  are  the  outgrowth  of  scanty 
ministerial  piety.     The  people,  in  no  age  of  the  world, 


74  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

have  refused  a  proper  and  sufficient  support  to  a  zealous, 
God-fearing  ministry. 

A  Church  Order  of  1600  reads  thus:  "Since  we 
have  received  information  that  servants  of  the  church 
(clergy)  and  schoolmasters,  the  parochial  teachers,  are 
guilty  of  whoredom  and  fornication,  we  command  that 
if  they  are  notoriously  guilty  they  shall  be  suspended. 
We  learn,  too,  that  some  of  the  village  pastors  do  not 
possess  the  Bible.  We  command  that  they  shall  get  a 
Bible  and  Concordance.  Those  whom  we  formerly  sus- 
pended shall  remain  so  until  they  give  proof  of  a  reforma- 
tion." A  pastor  Pfeifer  of  Neukirchen  and  Lassau  lived 
five  unhappy  years  with  his  congregation  ;  and  from 
mere  private  prejudice  refused  the  sacrament  of  the 
Lord's  Supper  to  the  sick  and  dying.  On  communion- 
day  he  overturned  the  baskets  of  the  fish- venders ;  was 
wounded  for  his  conduct ;  and  then  went  into  his  church 
to  the  performance  of  his  ministerial  duties.  He  did 
not  scruple  to  administer  the  elements  with  his  bloody 
hands.  Pastor  Johansen  of  Detzboll  wrote  in  his 
Church  Record  in  1647,  the  following:  "The  persons 
whom  I  will  name  have  persecuted  me  in  my  office, 
but  God  delivered  me  miraculously  out  of  their  hands. 
J.  Dirksen  struck  me  down  with  a  pitchfork:  I  was 
taken  home  as  dead  but  recovered  again ;  some  years 
afterwards  he  was  struck  dead,  and  died  in  the  street. 
J.  Volkwartsen  struck  me  with  my  own  spade.  Subse- 
quently he  was  killed  by  his  brother.  Where  his  soul 
went,  God  only  knows.  P.  Peusen  was  on  the  point 
of  stabbing  me  through,  but  M.  Payens  saved  me.  A, 
Frese  committed  adultery  with  my  wife,  and  followed 
me  with  a  loaded  rifle.  D.  Momsen  broke  two  of  ray 
right  ribs :  he  apologized  afterwards  for  his  offence.  I 
forgave  him.     O  Jesus,  protect  me  and  thy  poor  Chris- 


CORRUPT    UJS1VERSITY    LIFE.  75 

tianity,  that  I  may  praise  thee  in  eternity  !  "  A  church 
made  the  following  charges  against  its  pastor:  I.  He 
called  certain  people  "  scoundrels"  from  the  pulpit ;  to 
which  the  offender  pleaded  "  guilty."  II.  He  had  grown 
so  angry  in  his  sermon  that  he  afterwards  forgot  the 
Lord's  Prayer.  He  urged  that  "  this  had  happened 
some  time  ago."  III.  When  some  women  went  out  af- 
ter the  sermon,  he  called  after  them,  and  told  them  that 
if  they  would  not  stop  to  receive  the  blessing  they 
would  have  his  curse ;  "  not  guilty."  IV.  He  had  co- 
habited with  a  servant  girl,  and  an  illegitimate  child 
was  born  ;  "  others  do  the  same  thing."  V.  He  forgot 
the  cup  at  the  communion  ;  "  that  happened  long  ago." 
VI.  He  said  to  the  officer,  "  All  are  devils  who  want  me 
to  go  to  Messing ; "  "that  is  true." 

There  were  sad  evidences  of  the  same  immorality  in 
University  life.  Melanchthon's  prophecy  had  proved  too 
true :  u  We  have  seen  already  how  religion  has  been  put 
in  peril  by  the  irruption  of  barbarism,  and  J  am  very 
much  afraid  that  this  will  happen  again?  At  a  Dispu- 
tation in  the  University  of  Wittenberg,  the  Chancellor 
addressed  a  disputant  with  such  epithets  as  "  Hear,  thou 
hog !  thou  hound  !  thou  fool !  or  whatever  thou  art, 
thou  stolid  ass ! "  Another  prominent  personage  of 
Wittenberg,  in  a  Disputation,  became  so  enraged  at  hear- 
ing Melanchthon  addressed  as  authority  against  him,  that 
he  pulled  down  the  great  Reformer's  picture  which 
hung  near  him,  and  trampled  it  under  his  feet.  One 
Professor  was  so  deeply  in  debt  that  he  could  not  pay 
his  creditors,  "  if  every  hair  on  his  head  were  a  ducat." 
Another  was  "  in  bed  with  seven  wounds  received  in  a 
fall  when  he  was  coming  home  drunk."  Some  read 
their  newspapers  at  church-service.  Nor  did  the 
wives  and  daughters  of  the  Professors  lead  any  better 


76  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

life.  They  were  guilty  of  deeds  of  the  grossest  immo- 
rality, such  indeed  as  would  disgrace  a  less  enlightened 
people  than  the  Germans  at  that  period.1 

The  great  moral  decline  of  the  clergy  was  confined 
chiefly  to  the  Lutheran  church.  The  Reformed  was  ear- 
nest, pious,  and  aggressive.  At  this  very  time  it  was 
endeavoring  to  spread  the  leaven  of  the  Gospel  through 
other  lands.  It  was,  during  the  whole  period,  the  con- 
servative power  of  Protestantism.  As  might  be  ex- 
pected, it  suffered  somewhat  from  the  declension  of 
Lutheranism  ;  but  it  stood  manfully  up  to  the  crisis,  and 
met  the  issues  with  an  heroic  spirit.  When  the  Roman 
Catholics  saw  these  excesses  of  the  Lutherans,  and  wit- 
nessed the  return  to  their  fold  of  many  Protestants  who 
had  become  disgusted  with  the  vices  of  their  brethren, 
they  rejoiced  greatly,  and  used  every  available  means 
to  bring  back  more  of  their  erring  friends. 

We  must  remember,  however,  that  it  was  the  clergy 
and  not  the  laity,  who  were  the  agents  of  the  great 
declension.  The  theologians  had  submerged  the  land 
in  fruitless  controversy ;  they  hesitated  not  to  commit 
open  sin  when  occasion  demanded  it ;  they  neglected 
the  youth  of  the  whole  country ;  the  ignorant  peas- 
antry were  not  blessed  with  even  the  crumbs  of  truth ; 
the  pulpit  was  perverted  to  a  cathedra  for  the  declama- 
tion of  the  hyperbolical  rhetoric  that  a  corrupt  taste 
had  imported  from  Spain  and  Italy :  the  Apocrypha 
was  the  all-important  part  of  the  Bible ;  and  the  private 

1  1602:  Der  Frau  Gerlach  (Prof.  Theol.)  Tochter  ist  in  Gesohrei,  das» 
sie  mit  einem  kinde  gelie.  1613  :  Dr.  Happrecht's  Tochter  hat  ihre  Jang- 
frausohaft  verloren.  1622:  Dr.  Magirus  klagt  dass  seine  Frau  die  Dienstbo- 
ten  ihm  nicht  zur  Disposition  stelle,  mit  den  Alimentis  nicht  zufrieden  sei, 
imnier  Gaste  einlade,  und  viel  herum  laufe.  Frau  Magirns  klagt  ihren 
Ehemann  des  Ehebrnchs  an.  Tholuok,  Deutsche  Uhiversitdten.  Vol.  1, 
pp.  145-148.  Also  Dowding,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Calixtus,  pp. 
132-133. 


POPULAR    SKEPTICISM.  77 

life  of  the  clergy  was  corrupt  and  odious  to  the  Chris- 
tian conscience.  What  wonder  that  the  piety  of  the 
people  suffered  a  similar  decline  ?  Let  the  ministry  be 
steadfast,  and  the  masses  will  never  swerve.  The  result 
in  the  present  case  was,  that  the  latter  gradually  be- 
2ame  imbued  with  the  same  impiety  that  they  had 
learned,  to  their  sorrow,  of  the  former. 

Glancing  first  at  the  cultivated  circles,  we  find  a 
practical  indifference  well  nigh  akin  to  skepticism  be- 
ginning to  prevail  among  the  noble  and  wealthy.  The 
deference  which  the  Reformers  paid  to  the  princes  led 
the  latter  to  a  too  free  exercise  of  their  power,  and 
there  are  numberless  instances  of  their  despotic  usur- 
pations. They  claimed  supreme  control  over  the  re- 
ligious interests  of  their  jurisdiction,  and  came  into  fre- 
quent conflict  with  the  ecclesiastical  tribunals.  They 
maintained  a  tolerable  show  of  religion,  however,  consid- 
ering it  a  matter  of  prime  importance  to  have  the  ser- 
vices of  chaplains,  and  to  give  due  public  prominence  to 
doctrinal  questions.  Their  courts  were  most  generally 
irreligious,  and  sometimes  notoriously  corrupt. 

Walther,  the  court  chaplain  of  Ulrich  II.  of  East 
Friesland,  wrote  in  1637  a  letter  from  which  we  take 
the  following  words :  "  I  would  much  rather  be  silent 
concerning  my  sore  misfortune,  which  I  am  here  under- 
going than,  by  speaking,  to  make  the  wounds  of  my 
heart  break  out  afresh.  These  infernal  courtiers,  among 
whom  I  am  compelled  to  live  against  my  will,  doubt 
those  truths  which  even  the  heathen  have  learned  to  be- 
lieve." A  writer  of  1630  describes  three  classes  of 
skeptics  among  the  nobility  of  Hamburg ;  first,  those- 
who  believe  that  religion  is  nothing  but  a  mere  fiction,, 
invented  to  keep  the  masses  within  restraint ;  second, 
those  who  give  preference  to  no  faith,  but  think  that  all 


78  HISTOEY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

religions  have  a  germ  of  truth ;  and  third,  those  who, 
confessing  that  there  must  be  one  true  religion,  are  un- 
able to  decide  whether  it  is  papal,  Calvinist,  or  Luther 
an  ;  and  consequently  believe  nothing  at  all. 

This  classification  might  be  applied  to  the  whole  of 
Protestant  Germany,  as  far  as  the  higher  classes  are 
concerned.  They  exhibited  a  growing  taste  for  an- 
tiquity ;  and,  with  them,  there  was  but  a  slight  differ- 
ence between  the  sublime  utterances  of  inspiration  and 
the  masterpieces  of  pagan  genius.  We  find  in  a  cate- 
chism of  that  time  that  the  proverbs  of  Cato  and  the 
Mimi  Publiani  constitute  an  authorized  appendix. 

A  practical   infidelity,  bearing  the   name  of  Epicu- 
reanism, prevailed  even  before  the  war ;  and  it  became 
more  decided  and  injurious  as  the  war  progressed.     The 
highest  idea  of  religion  was  adherence  to  creed.  Princes 
who  even  thought  themselves  devoted  and  earnest,  had 
no   experimental   knowledge  of   regeneration ;    and   in 
this,  as  we  have  shown,  they  were  but  little  surpassed 
by   the   clergy   themselves.     Orthodoxy  was  the  aim 
and  pride  of  those  religionists.     Hear  the  dying  testi- 
mony of  John  Christian  Koenig,  in   1664:  "My  dear 
Confessor,  since  I  observe  that  the  good  Lord  is  about 
to  take  me  out  of  this  world,  I  want  it  understood  that  I 
remain  unchanged  and  firm  to  the  Augsburg  Confession  ; 
I  will  live  by  it  and  die  true  to   it.     It  is   well  known 
that   I   have    directed   my  teaching   according  to   its 
truths.    I  die  the  avowed  enemy  of  all  innovation  and 
Syncretistic  error  !  " 

The  licentiousness  of  life,  not  less  than  of  faith,  was 
deplorable  in  the  German  courts.  Dancing  was  carried 
to  great  excess  and  indecorum ;  and  though  there  were 
edicts  issued  against  it  during  the  Thirty  Years'  War, 
the  custom  seems  to  have   undergone  but  little  abate- 


POPULAR    EVIMOPALITY.  79 

merit.  Drunkenness  was  very  common,  and  even  the 
highest  dignitaries  set  but  a  sorry  example  in  this 
respect.  The  Court  of  Ludwig  of  Wiirtemberg  estab- 
lished six  glasses  of  wine  as  the  minimum  evidence  of 
good  breeding;  one  to  quench  the  thirst;  the  second 
for  the  King's  health ;  the  third  for  those  present ;  the 
fourth  for  the  feast-giver  and  his  wife  ;  the  fifth  for  the 
permanence  of  the  government,  and  the  last  for  absent 
friends.  The  example  of  all  nations  proves  that  when 
the  nobility  thus  indulge  themselves,  and  become  the 
devotees  of  passion  and  luxury,  they  do  not  need  to 
wait  long  for  imitators  among  the  lower  and  poorer 
classes.  The  poor  looked  to  the  rich  and  their  rulers 
as  standards  of  fashion  and  religion.  They  esteemed  it 
not  less  an  honor  than  a  privilege  to  follow  in  the  foot- 
steps of  their  acknowledged  chiefs.  The  governing  and 
the  governed  stood  but  a  short  distance  from  each 
other,  both  in  faith  and  in  morals. 

There  was  great  display  and  extravagance  in  the 
ordinary  ceremonies  of  matrimony  and  baptism.  It 
was  quite  common  for  the  wedding  festival  to  last 
three  days,  and  the  baptismal  feast  two  days.  The 
expenses  were  not  at  all  justified  by  the  means  of 
the  feast-makers  ;  for  the  humblest  mechanics  indulged 
themselves  to  an  excessive  extent.  Even  funeral  occa- 
sions were  made  to  subserve  the  dissipating  spirit  of 
these  times  ;  they  were  the  signal  for  hilarity  and  feast- 
ing. Distant  friends  were  invited  to  be  present ;  and 
the  whole  scene  was  at  once  repulsive  to  a  healthy 
taste  and  pure  religion.  A  writer  from  the  very  midst 
of  the  Thirty  Years'  War  gives  us  the  following  item  • 
;'  The  number  of  courses  served  at  funerals  frequently 
amounted  to  as  many  as  two  hundred  and  thirty-four. 
The  tables  were  furnished  with  expensive  luxuries  and 


80  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

• 

costly  wines,  and  the  people  gave  themselves  up  to 
feasting  and  noting  until  far  into  the  night."  The  com- 
mon people  became  more  habituated  to  drinking  strong 
liquors.  New  breweries  arose  in  various  localities,  and 
drunkenness  became  a  wide-spread  evil.  In  1600,  th« 
city  of  Zwickau  numbered  only  ten  thousand  inhabi* 
tants  ;  but  it  could  claim  thirty-four  breweries  to  supply 
them  with  beer.  During  the  war,  in  1631,  that  num- 
ber rose  to  seventy. 

But  it  is  needless  to  particularize  the  phases  of  pop- 
ular immorality  as  they  existed  in  the  time  of  which 
we  speak.  It  is  enough  to  say  that  all  classes  be- 
trayed a  growing  disgust  at  religion  and  a  gradual  de- 
cline in  morals.  The  danger  was  imminent  that  the 
great  work  of  the  Reformation  would  be  in  vain,  and 
that  it  would  soon  come  to  ruin. 

Every  department  of  ecclesiastical  authority  having 
become  disarranged  and  weakened,  there  must  now  be 
a  reawakening,  or  the  labors  of  Luther  and  his  coadju- 
tors will  be  swept  away.  The  popular  mind  should  be 
deflected  from  controversy,  and  become  united,  at  least 
on  some  points  of  faith  and  theory.  The  pulpit  needs 
a  thorough  regeneration,  and  the  Gospel  should  reach 
the  masses  by  a*  natural  and  earnest  method.  The  uni- 
versity system  calls  for  reorganization,  and  a  rigid  cen-l 
sorship  exercised  upon  the  teachings  of  the  professors.! 
Childhood  must  be  no  longer  neglected,  and  the  illite- 
rate must  become  indoctrinated  into  the  elements  of 
Scriptural  truth.  The  prevalent  social  evils  should  re- 
ceive severe  rebuke  from  the  private  Christian  and  the 
public  teacher.  Calixtus,  Boehme,  Arndt  and  Gerhard 
have  done  nobly,  but  they  have  pursued  paths  so  totally 
divergent  that  their  labors  have  not  produced  all  the 
good  effects  of   a  united  work.     Their  efforts  were  pre- 


A    PLAX    NECESSARY.  81 

paratory,  but  not  homogeneous ;  and  what  is  now 
needed  to  make  their  writings  and  example  permanently 
effective,  is  a  plan  for  infusing  new  life  into  the  church. 
Then  there  must  be  inflexible  system  and  heroic  deter- 
mination for  the  consummation  of  such  a  plan. 

When  the  demand  became  most  imperative,  the 
great  want  was  supplied.  Let  all  the  records  of  prov- 
idential supply  and  guidance  be  studiously  searched, 
and  we  believe  that  Pietism — the  great  movement 
which  we  are  now  about  to  trace — will  take  its  place 
among  them  as  one  of  the  clearest,  most  decided,  and 
most  triumphant. 


CHAPTER    III. 

PIETISM  AND  ITS  MISSION 

If  any  apology  can  be  offered  in  defence  of  the 
ecclesiastical  evils  already  recounted,  it  will  be,  that  the 
fearful  devastations  of  the  long  warfare  had  wrought  the 
public  mind  into  a  feverish  and  unnatural  state.  We 
must  not,  therefore,  pass  that  cold  criticism  upon  the 
Church  and  her  representatives  to  which  they  would 
be  justly  entitled,  had  they  been  guilty  of  the  same 
vices  during  a  time  of  profound  peace  and  material 
prosperity. 

The  philosophy  of  this  whole  period  of  ecclesiastical 
history  may  be  summed  up  in  a  sentence :  The  numer- 
ous theological  controversies,  and  the  pastoral  neglect 
of  the  people,  before  the  war,  had  unfitted  both  the 
clergy  and  the  masses  for  deriving  from  it  that  deep 
penitence  and  thorough  reconsecration  which  a  sea- 
son of  great  national  affliction  should  have  engen- 
dered. The  moral  excesses  apparent  during  this  time 
had  been  produced  by  causes  long  anterior  to  it. 
Hence,  when  the  protracted  time  of  carnage  and  the 
destruction  of  property  did  come,  there  was  no  prepara- 
tion of  mind  or  heart  to  derive  improvement  from  it. 
Had  some  provision  been  made,  had  theology  not 
abounded  in  idle  disputes,  and  had  the  moral  educatioD 


IMPROVEMENT  OF  THE  CLERGY.  83 

of  the  masses  been  faithfully  cared  for,  instead  of  the 
evils  which  have  been  so  reluctantly  related,  there 
would  have  been  a  lengthy  succession  of  glowing  in- 
stances of  devout  piety.  And  Protestantism,  instead 
of  emerging  from  the  conflict  with  ouly  equal  rights 
before  the  law,  would  have  possessed  a  sanctified  heart, 
and  a  vigorous,  truth-seeking  mind. 

Time  was  now  needed  to  gather  up  the  instruction 
taught  by  those  pillaged  towns,  slain  citizens,  and 
broken  social  and  ecclesiastical  systems.  A  few  years 
passed  by,  when  the  lessons  began  to  be  learned,  and 
signs  of  rejuvenation  appeared.  After  Spener  had  com- 
menced his  reformatory  labors,  he  expressly  and  repeat- 
edly declared  that  he  did  not  originate,  but  only  gave 
expression  to,  a  spirit  of  religious  earnestness  that  had 
already  arisen  in  various  quarters.  To  him  belongs  the 
honor  of  cultivating  and  guiding  these  reassured  hearts 
who  had  derived  most  improvement  from  the  Thirty 
Years'  War.  Pietism,  the  fruit  of  their  union,  became 
a  triumph  under  the  leadership  of  Spener. 

But  who  were  these  persons  who  became  aroused 
to  a  sense  of  the  exigencies  of  the  times,  and  saw  that 
the  danger  which  threatened  the  kingdom  of  God  in 
Germany  was  now  scarcely  less  than  when  Tilly  was 
leading  his  maddened  hordes  through  the  fair  fields 
and  over  the  ruins  of  those  once  happy  towns  ?  Some 
of  the  clergy  were  the  first  to  indicate  new  life.  They 
preached  with  more  unction,  and  addressed  themselves 
to  the  immediate  demands  of  the  parish,  especially  to 
provide  for  the  orphans  and  widows  of  those  who  had 
fallen  in  battle.  Certain  ministers  who  had  spent  their 
youth  in  vain  theological  wrangling,  preached  sermons 
which  contained  better  matter  than  redundant  meta- 
phor and  classical  quotations.    Midler  and  Scriver  serve 


84  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

as  fitting  illustrations  of  the  improvement.  They 
avoided  the  extended  analytical  and  rhetorical  methods 
long  in  use,  and  adopted  the  more  practical  system  of 
earnest  appeal  and  exhortation. 

The  clergy  needed  not  to  wait  long  before  behold- 
ing the  fruit  of  their  labors.  For  a  better  spirit  mani- 
fested itself  also  among  the  lower  classes.  A  singular 
interest  arose  in  sacred  music.  Not  only  in  those  ven- 
erable Gothic  Cathedrals,  so  long  the  glory  of  the  Ro- 
man Catholic  Church,  but  in  the  field  and  the  work- 
shop there  could  be  heard  the  melodies  of  Luther, 
Sachs,  and  Paul  Gerhard.  Young  men  appeared  in 
numbers,  offering  themselves  as  candidates  for  the  min- 
istry. But  let  it  not  be  supposed  that  these  encourag- 
ing signs  were  universal.  While  the  eye  of  faith  could 
read  the  most  decided  lessons  of  hope,  the  religious 
dearth  was  still  wide-spread.  Nor  was  it  unlikely  that 
in  a  short  time  it  would  triumph  over  all  the  efforts  for 
new  life.  When  Spener  rose  to  a  position  of  promi- 
nence and  influence,  he  saw,  as  no  one  else  was  able  to 
see,  the  real  danger  to  the  cause  of  truth ;  and  those 
affecting  descriptions  which  we  find  among  his  writings, 
revealing  the  real  wants  of  the  latter  half  of  the  seven- 
teenth century,  show  how  keenly  his  own  heart  had 
become  impressed  by  them. 

It  was  very  evident  that  the  Lutheran  Church 
would  require  a  long  period  for  self-purification,  if 
indeed  she  could  achieve  it  at  all.  The  shorter  and 
more  effectual  way  would  be  to  operate  individually 
upon  the  popular  mind.  And  does  not  the  entire  hi* 
tory  of  the  Church  prove  that  reform  has  originated 
from  no  concerted  action  of  the  body  needing  reforma- 
tion, but  from  the  solemn  conviction  and  persevering 
efforts  of  some  single  mind,  which,  working  first  alone, 


PIETISM    A    NECESSITY    OF   THE    TIMES.  85 

has  afterward  won  to  its  assistance  many  others  ?  Its 
work  then  reacted  upon  the  parent  organization  in 
such  way  that  the  latter  became  animated  with  new 
power. 

The  enemies  of  Pietism  made  the  same  objection  to 
it  that  all  the  opponents  of  reform  have  ever  made : 
"  This  is  very  good  in  itself,  but  do  you  not  see  that  it 
is  not  the  Church  that  is  working  ?  We  would  love  to 
see  the  cause  of  truth  advanced  and  our  torpid  Church 
invigorated  with  the  old  Reformation-life ;  but  we 
would  rather  see  the  whole  matter  done  in  a  perfectly 
systematic  and  legitimate  way.  Now  this  Pietism  has 
some  good  features  about  it,  but  it  acts  in  its  own  name. 
We  do  not  like  this  absurd  fancy  of  ecclesiolce  in  eccle- 
sia  ;  but  we  prefer  the  Church  to  act  as  the  Church, 
and  for  its  own  purposes."  Thus  reasoned  the  enemies 
of  Pietism,  who  claimed  as  heartily  as  any  of  their  con- 
temporaries that  they  were  strict  adherents  of  truth  and 
warm  supporters  of  spiritual  life.  But  their  reasoning, 
however  baseless,  found  favor ;  and  the  Church  gradu- 
ally came  to  look  upon  Pietism  not  as  a  handmaid, 
but  as  an  adversary. 

But  we  must  first  learn  what  Pietism  proposed  to 
do  before  we  can  appreciate  its  historical  importance. 
Dorner  holds,  with  a  large  number  of  others,  that  this 
new  tendency  was  a  necessary  stage  in  the  develop- 
ment of  Protestantism, — a  supplement  of  the  Reforma- 
tion. Though  laughed  at  for  two  centuries  by  the 
Churchists  on  the  one  hand,  and  by  the  Rationalists  on 
the  other  it  has  to-day  a  firmer  hold  upon  the  respect 
of  those  who  know  its  history  best  than  at  any  former 
period.  What  if  Arnold,  and  Petersen  and  his  wife, 
did  indulge  in  great  extravagances  \  Have  not  the 
same  unpleasant  things  occurred  in  the  Church  at  other 


80  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM 

times  ?  Yet,  because  not  classed  under  any  sectarian 
name,  there  Las  been  but  a  transient  estimate  placed 
upon  them,  and  criticism  has  been  merciless.  Is  not 
every  good  institution  subject  to  perversion  at  any 
time  ?  We  believe  Dorner  to  be  correct,  and  that  Spe- 
uer  was  the  veritable  successor  of  Luthei  and  Melanch- 
thon.  A  recent  author,  who  has  shown  a  singular 
facility  in  grouping  historical  periods  and  discovering 
their  great  significance,  says  :  "  Pietism  went  back  from 
the  cold  faith  of  the  seventeenth  century  to  the  living 
faith  of  the  Reformation.  But  just  because  this  return 
was  vital  and  produced  by  the  agency  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  it  could  not  be  termed  a  literal  return.  We 
must  not  forget  that  the  orthodoxy  of  the  seventeenth 
century  was  only  the  extreme  elaboration  of  an  error, 
the  beginning  of  which  we  find  as  far  back  as  Luther's 
time,  and  which  became  more  and  more  a  power  in  the 
Church  through  the  influence  of  Melanchthon.  It  was 
this :  Mistaking  the  faith  by  which  we  believe  for  the 
faith  which  is  believed.  The  principle  of  the  Reforma- 
tion was  justification  by  faith,  not  the  doctrine  of  faith 
and  justification.  In  reply  to  the  Catholics  it  was 
deemed  sufticient  to  show  that  this  was  the  true  doc- 
trine which  points  out  the  way  of  salvation  to  man. 
And  the  great  danger  lay  in  mistaking  faith  itself  foi 
the  doctrine  of  faith.  Therefore,  in  the  controversies 
concerning  justifying  faith,  we  find  thai;  faith  gradually 
came  to  be  considered  in  relation  to  its  doctrinal  aspects 
more  than  in  connection  with  the  personal,  practical, 
and  experimental  knowledge  of  men.  In  this  view 
Pietism  is  an  elaboration  of  the  faith  of  the  sixteenth 

century Without    being    heterodox,   Spener 

even  expressed  himself  in  the  most  decided  manner  in 
favor  of  the  doctrines  of  the  Church.     He  would  make 


aubeelen's  testimony.  87 

faith  consist  less  in  the  dogmatism  of  the  head  than  in 
the  motions  of  the  heart ;  he  would  bring  the  doctrine 
away  from  the  angry  disputes  of  the  schools  and  incor- 
porate it  into  practical  life.  He  was  thoroughly  united 
with  the  Reformers  as  to  the  real  signification  of  justi- 
fying faith,  but  these  contraries  which  were  sought  to 

be   reestablished   he   rejected From   Spener's 

view  a  new  phase  of  spiritual  life  began  to  pervade  the 
heart.  The  orthodoxy  of  the  State  Church  had  been 
accustomed  to  consider  all  baptized  persons  as  true 
believers  if  only  they  had  been  educated  in  wholesome 
doctrines.  There  was  a  general  denial  of  that  living, 
conscious,  self-faith  which  was  vital  in  Luther,  and  had 
transformed  the  world.  The  land,  because  it  was  fur- 
nished with  the  gospel  and  the  sacraments,  was  consid- 
ered an  evangelical  country.  The  contrast  between 
mere  worldly  and  spiritual  life,  between  the  living  and 
dead  members  of  the  Church,  was  practically  abolished, 
though  there  still  remained  a  theoretical  distinction 
between  the  visible  and  invisible  Church.  As  to  the 
world  outside  the  pale  of  the  Church,  the  Jews  and 
Heathen,  there  was  no  thought  whatever.  Men  be- 
lieved they  had  done  their  whole  duty  when  they  had 
roundly  combated  the  other  Christian  Churches. 
Thus  lived  the  State  Church  in  quiet  confidence  of 
its  own  safety  and  pure  doctrine  at  the  time  when  the 
nation  was  recovering  from  the  devastations  of  the 
Thirty  Years'  War.  'In  the  times  succeeding  the 
Reformation,'  says  a  Wiirtemberg  pastor  of  the  past 
century,  '  the  greater  portion  of  the  common  people 
trusted  that  they  would  certainly  be  saved  if  they 
believed  correct  doctrines ;  if  one  is  neither  a  Roman 
Catholic,  nor  a  Calvinist,  and  confesses  his  opposition, 


88  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

he  cannot  possibly  miss  heaven  ;  holiness  is  not  so 
necessary  after  all.' '' l 

The  enemies  of  Pietism  have  confounded  it  with 
Mysticism.  There  are  undoubted  points  in  common, 
but  Pietism  was  aggressive  instead  of  contemplative  ; 
it  was  practical  rather  than  theoretical.  Both  systems 
made  purity  of  life  essential,  but  Mysticism  could  not 
guard  against  mental  disease,  while  Pietism  enjoyed  a 
long  season  of  healthful  life.  The  latter  was  far  too 
much  engaged  in  relieving  immediate  and  pressing- 
wants  to  fall  into  the  gross  errors  which  mark  almost 
the  entire  career  of  the  former.  Pietism  was  mystical 
in  so  far  as  it  made  purity  of  heart  essential  to  salva- 
tion ;  but  it  was  the  very  antipodes  of  Mysticism  when 
organized  and  operating  against  a  languid  and  torpid 
Church  with  such  weapons  as  Spener  and  his  coadju- 
tors employed.  Boehme  and  Spener  were  world-wide 
apart  in  many  respects ;  but  in  purity  of  heart  they 
were  beautifully  in  unison. 

Pietism  commenced  upon  the  principle  that  the 
Church  was  corrupt ;  that  the  ministry  were  generally 
guilty  of  gross  neglect ;  and  that  the  people  were 
cursed  with  spiritual  death.  It  proposed  as  a  theo- 
logical means  of  improvement :  I.  That  the  scholastic 
theology,  which  reigned  in  the  academies,  and  was  com- 
posed of  the  intricate  and  disputable  doctrines  and 
obscure  and  unusual  forms  of  expression,  should  be 
totally  abolished.  II.  That  polemical  divinity,  which 
comprehended  the  controversies  subsisting  between 
Christians  of  different  communions,  should  be  less 
eagerly  studied  and  less  frequently  treated,  though  not 

1  Auberlen  :  Die  Gottliche  Offenharung,  vol.  I.,  pp.  278-281.  The  sec- 
ond volume  of  this  important  work  has  been  completed,  but  the  gifted  au- 
thor has  just  died.  His  book  must  therefore  take  its  place  in  the  catalogue 
of  brilliant  but  hopeless  fragments. 


SPENER   AS    A   YOUTH.  89 

entirely  neglected.  III.  That  all  mixture  of  philoso- 
phy and  human  science  with  divine  wisdom  was  to  be 
most  carefully  avoided  ;  that  is,  that  pagan  philosophy 
and  classical  learning  should  be  kept  distinct  from,  and 
by  no  means  supersede,  Biblical  theology.  But,  IV. 
That,  on  the  contrary,  all  those  students  who  were 
designed  for  the  ministry  should  be  kept  accustomed 
from  their  early  youth  to  the  perusal  and  study  of  the 
Holy  Scriptures,  and  be  taught  a  plain  system  of  theol- 
ogy drawn  from  these  unerring  sources  of  truth.  V. 
That  the  whole  course  of  their  education  should  be  so 
directed  as  to  render  them  useful  in  life,  by  the  practi- 
cal power  of  their  doctrine,  and  the  commanding  influ- 
ence of  their  example.1 

The  founder  of  Pietism,  Philip  Jacob  Spener,  was 
in  many  respects  the  most  remarkable  man  of  his  cen- 
tury. He  was  only  thirteen  years  old  at  the  close  of 
the  Thirty  Years'  War.  His  educational  advantages 
were  great ;'  and  after  completing  his  theological  studies 
at  Strasburg,  where  he  enjoyed  the  society  and  instruc- 
tion of  the  younger  Buxtorf,  he  made  the  customary 
tour  of  the  universities.  He  visited  Basle,  Tubingen, 
Freiburg,  Geneva,  and  Lyons  ;  spending  three  years  be- 
fore his  return  home.  From  a  child  he  was  noted  for 
his  taciturn,  peaceful,  confiding  disposition ;  and  when 
he  reached  manhood  these  same  qualities  increased 
in  strength  and  beauty.  His  studies  had  led  him  some- 
what from  the  course  of  theology — at  least  certain 
branches  of  it — and  he  became  greatly  fascinated  with 
heraldry.  But  gradually  he  identified  himself  with 
pastoral  life,  and  into  its  wants  and  duties  he  entered 
with  great  enthusiasm.  He  was  for  a  short  time  public 
preacher  in  Strasburg,  but  on  removing  from  that  city 

1  Watson,  Theolog.  Diet.  Art.  Protestant  Pietists. 


90  HISTOKY   OF    RATIONALISM. 

he  assumed   the  same  office  in  Frankfoit-on-the-Main. 
'  Here  the  field  opened  fairly  before  him,  and,  confident 
of  success,  he  began  the  work  of  reform. 

The  instruction  of  children  in  the  doctrines  of  Chris- 
tianity, as  we  have  already  said,  had  been  sadly  neg 
lected,  because  the  pastors  of  the  church  had  committed 
the  task  to  less  competent  hands.  Spener  determined 
that  he  would  assume  complete  control  of  the  matter 
himself,  and,  if  possible,  teach  the  children  during  the 
week  without  any  cooperation.  His  labors  proved  a 
great  success ;  and  his  reform  in  catechetical  instruction, 
not  only  in  Frankfort,  but  thence  into  many  parts  of 
Germany,  eventuated  in  one  of  the  chief  triumphs  of 
his  life.  But  he  had  further  noticed  that  the  customary 
preaching  was  much  above  the  capacity,  and  unsuited 
to  the  wants,  of  the  masses.  He  resolved  upon  a  simple 
and  perspicuous  style  of  discourse,  such  as  the  common 
mind  could  comprehend.  But,  seeing  that  this  was  not 
enough,  he  organized  weekly  meetings  of  his  hearers,  to 
which  they  were  cordially  invited.  There  he  introduced 
the  themes  of  the  previous  Sabbath,  explained  any  diffi- 
cult points  that  were  not  fully  understood,  and  enlarged 
on  the  plain  themes  of  the  gospel.  These  meetings 
were  the  Collegia  Pietatis,  or  Schools  of  Devotion,  which 
gave  the  first  occasion  for  the  reproachful  epithet  of 
Pietism.  They  brought  upon  their  founder  much  op- 
position and  odium,  but  were  destined  to  produce  an 
abundant  harvest  throughout  the  land.  Spener  enter- 
tained young  men  at  his  own  house,  and  prepared 
them,  by  careful  instruction  and  his  own  godly  example, 
for  great  ministerial  usefulness.  These,  too,  were  nur- 
tured in  the  collegia,  and  there  they  learned  how  to 
deal  with  the  uneducated  mind  and  to  meet  the  great 
wants  of  the  people.     The  meetings  were,  at  the  outset, 


GROWING    INFLUENCE    OP   SPENER.  91 

scantily  attended,  but  they  increased  so  much  in  interest 
that,  first  his  own  dwelling,  and  then  his  church,  became 
crowded  to  their  utmost  capacity. 

In  1675  Spener  published  his  great  work,  Pia  De- 
sideria.  Here  he  laid  down  his  platform :  That  the  word 
of  God  should  be  brought  home  to  the  popular  heart  / 
that  laymen,  when  capable  and  pious,  should  act  as 
preachers,  thus  becoming  a  valuable  ally  of  the  ministry  • 
that  deep  love  and  practical  piety  are  a  necessity  to  every 
preacher  •  that  hindness,  moderation,  and  an  effort  to 
convince  should  be  observed  toward  theological  opponents  ; 
that  great  efforts  should  be  made  to  have  worthy  and 
divinely-called  young  men  properly  instructed  for  the 
ministry  /  and  that  all  preachers  should  urge  upon  the 
people  the  importance  of  faith  and  its  fruits.  This  book 
was  the  foundation  of  Spener's  greatest  influence  and  also 
of  the  strongest  opposition  with  which  he  met.  As 
long  as  he  taught  in  private  he  escaped  all  general  an- 
tagonism ;  but  on  the  publication  of  his  work  he  be- 
came the  mark  of  envy,  formalism,  and  high-churchism. 

After  he  was  invited  to  Dresden  in  1686,  the  state 
church  indicated  a  decided  disapprobation  of  his  meas- 
ures. He  incurred  the  displeasure  of  the  Elector  by 
his  fearless  preaching  and  novel  course  of  educating  the 
young.  His  teaching  of  the  masses  drew  upon  him  the 
charge  that  "  a  court-preacher  was  invited  to  Dresden, 
but  behold,  nothing  but  a  school  teacher  !  "  He  deemed 
it  his  duty  to  accept  the  invitation  of  Frederic  of  Bran- 
denburg to  make  Berlin  his  residence,  where,  in  1705, 
he  ended  his  days,  after  a  life  of  remarkable  usefulness 
but  of  unusual  strife. 

It  would  be  a  pleasure  to  linger  a  while  in  the 
beautiful  scenes  which  Spener's  life  affords  us.  En- 
dowed with  the  most  childlike  nature,  he  was  never- 


92  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

theless  a  lion  in  contest.  And  yet  who  will  find  any 
bitterness  in  his  words;  where  does  he  wax  angry 
against  his  opponent?  He  did  not  shun  contro- 
versy, because  his  mission  demanded  it ;  but  no  mai. 
loved  peace  more  than  Spener.  His  mind  was  always 
calm  ;  and  it  was  his  lifelong  aim  to  "  do  no  sin.'*  His 
enemies, — among  whom  we  must  not  forget  t  hat  he  had 
a  Schelwig,  a  Carpzov,  an  Alberti,  and  a  whole  Witten- 
berg Faculty, — never  denied  his  amiable  disposition ; 
and  it  was  one  of  his  expressions  in  late  life  that  "  all 
the  attacks  of  his  enemies  had  never  afflicted  him  with 
but  one  sleepless  night."  It  was  his  personal  character 
that  went  almost  as  far  as  his  various  writings  to  infuse 
practical  piety  into  the  church.  He  was  respected  by 
the  great  and  good  throughout  the  land.  Crowned 
heads  from  distant  parts  of  the  Continent  wrote  to  him, 
asking  his  advice  on  ecclesiastical  questions.  He  was 
one  of  those  men  who,  like  Luther,  Wesley,  and  others, 
was  not  blind  to  the  great  service  of  an  extensive  cor- 
respondence. He  answered  six  hundred  and  twenty- 
two  letters  during  one  year,  and  at  the  end  of  that  time 
there  lay  three  hundred  unanswered  upon  his  table. 
His  activity  in  composition  knew  no  bounds.  For 
many  years  of  his  life  he  was  a  member  of  the  Consis- 
tory, and  was  engaged  in  its  sessions  from  eight  o'clock 
in  the  morning  until  seven  in  the  evening.  But  still 
he  found  time,  according  to  Canstein,  to  publish  seven 
folio  volumes,  sixty-three  quartos,  seven  octavos,  and 
forty-six  duodecimos ;  besides  very  many  introductions 
and  prefaces  to  the  works  of  friends  and  admirers,  and 
republications  of  practical  books  suited  to  the  times,  and 
the  cause  he  was  serving.  After  his  death  his  enemies 
did  all  in  their  power  to  cast  reproach  upon  his  name. 
They  even   maligned  his   moral  character,  which  had 


FRANCKE.  93 

hitherto  stood  above  reproach.  It  was  a  grave  question 
at  the  hostile  universities  whether  the  term  Beatas 
Spener  could  be  used  of  him.  Professor  Teck,  of  Ro- 
stock, published  a  work  On  the  Happiness  of  those  who 
die  in  the  Lord,  in  which  he  decided  that  heaven  will 
open  its  gates  sometimes  to  the  extremely  impious  who 
die  without  any  external  mark  of  repentance,  and  also 
to  those  who  die  in  gross  sin ;  but  not  to  such  a  man  as 
Spener. 

The  University  of  Halle  was  founded  for  the  avowed 
purpose  of  promoting  personal  piety,  Scriptural  knowl- 
edge, and  practical  preaching  throughout  the  land.  It 
had  already  been  a  place  of  instruction,  but  not  of  theo- 
logical training.  The  theological  faculty  was  composed 
of  Francke,  Anton,  and  Breithaupt.  These  men  were 
deeply  imbued  with  the  fervid  zeal  of  Spener,  and  set 
themselves  to  work  to  improve  and  continue  what  he 
had  inaugurated.  The  field  was  ample,  but  the  task 
was  arduous.  While  Spener  lived  at  Dresden,  Francke, 
who  taught  at  Leipsic,  enjoyed  a  brief  personal  inter- 
course with  him,  and  became  thoroughly  animated  with 
his  spirit.  On  his  return  to  Leipsic,  he  commenced 
exegetical  lectures  on  various  parts  of  the  Bible,  and 
instituted  Collegia  Pietatis  for  such  students  as  felt 
disposed  to  attend  them.  So  great  was  the  increase  of 
attendance,  both  at  the  lectures  and  also  at  the  meet- 
ings, that  Francke  was  suspended  and  Pietism  for- 
bidden. It  was,  therefore,  with  a  wounded  and  injured 
spirit  that  he  availed  himself  of  the  privilege  afforded 
in  the  new  seat  of  learning. 

Francke  was  naturally  an  impulsive  man,  and  his 
ardent  temperament  led  him  sometimes  into  unintended 
vagaries.  An  extravagance  of  his  once  caused  Spener 
to  remark,  that  "  his  friends  gave  him  more  trouble  than 


94  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

all  liis  enemies."  But  he  was  not  more  erroneous  than 
most  men  of  the  same  type  of  character ;  and  there  is 
not  a  real  moral  or  intellectual  blemish  upon  his  repu 
tation.  His  aim  was  fixed  when  he  commenced  to  teach 
at  Halle ;  and  he  prosecuted  it  with  undivided  assiduity 
until  the  close  of  his  useful  life.  The  story  of  his  con 
version  is  beautifully  told  in  his  own  language.  Like 
Chalmers,  he  was  a  minister  to  others  before  his  own 
heart  was  changed.  He  was  about  to  preach  froni  the 
words,  "  But  these  are  written,  that  ye  might  believe 
that  Jesus  is  the  Christ,  the  Son  of  God ;  and  that  be- 
lieving ye  might  have  life  through  his  name."  He  says  : 
"  My  whole  former  life  came  before  my  eyes  just  as  one 
sees  a  whole  city  from  a  lofty  spire.  At  first  it  seemed 
as  if  I  could  number  all  my  sins  ;  but  soon  there  opened 
the  great  fountain  of  them — my  own  blind  unbelief, 
which  had  so  long  deceived  me ;  I  was  terrified  with 
my  lost  condition,  and  wondered  if  God  were  merciful 
enough  to  bless  me.  I  kneeled  down  and  prayed.  All 
doubt  vanished ;  I  was  assured  in  my  own  heart  of  the 
grace  of  God  in  Christ.  Now  I  know  him,  not  alone  as 
my  God  but  as  my  Father.  All  melancholy  and  unrest 
vanished,  and  I  was  so  overcome  with  joy,  that  from  the 
fullness  of  my  heart  I  could  praise  my  Saviour.  With 
great  sorrow  I  had  kneeled ;  but  with  wonderful 
ecstacy  I  had  risen  up.  It  seemed  to  me  as  if  my  whole 
previous  life  had  been  a  deep  sleep,  as  if  1  had  only 
been  dreaming,  and  now  for  the  first  time  had  waked  up. 
I  was  convinced  that  the  whole  world,  with  all  its  tempo- 
ral joy,  could  not  kindle  up  such  pleasure  in  my  breast.r 
A  few  days  afterwards  he  preached  from  the  same 
text  as  before.  The  sermon  was  the  first  real  one 
that  he  had  preached.  Henceforth  his  heart  was  in  the 
work  for  which  God  had  chosen  him. 


THE  OKPHAN  HOUSE  AT  HALLE.  95 

He  preached  in  Halle  statedly,  for,  in  addition  to  the 
duties  of  the  professor's  chair,  he  was  pastor  of  a  church. 
His  ministrations  in  the  pulpit  became  extremely  popu- 
lar and  attractive.  Naturally  eloquent,  he  won  the 
masses  to  his  ministry  ;  and  by  his  forcible  presentation 
of  truth  he  molded  them  into  his  own  methods  of  faith 
and  thought.  Nor  was  he  less  zealous  or  successful  in 
his  theological  lectures.  He  commenced  them  in  1698, 
by  a  course  on  the  Introduction  to  the  Old  Testament, 
concluding  with  a  second  one  on  the  New  Testament. 

In  1712,  he  published  his  Hermeneutical  Lectures, 
containing  his  comments  on  sections  and  books  of  Scrip- 
ture, particularly  on  the  Psalms  and  the  Gospel  of  John. 
In  his  early  life  he  had  observed  the  dearth  of  lectures 
on  the  Scriptures ;  and  he  accordingly  applied  himself 
to  remedy  the  evil.  His  principles  of  instruction  were, 
first,  that  the  student  be  converted  before  he  be  trained 
tor  the  ministry,  otherwise  his  theology  would  be  merely 
a  sacred  iphilosoiphy—philosophia  de  rebus  sacris ;  sec- 
ond, that  he  be  thoroughly  taught  in  the  Bible,  for  "  a 
theologian  is  born  in  the  Scriptures."  His  Method  of 
Theological  Study  produced  a  profound  impression,  and 
was  the  means  of  regenerating  the  prevailing  system 
of  theological  instruction  at  the  universities. 

But  Francke  is  chiefly  known  to  the  present  gener- 
ation by  his  foundation  of  the  Orphan  House  at  Halle. 
This  institution  was  the  outgrowth  of  his  truly  practical 
and  beneficent  character ;  and  from  his  day  to  the  pres- 
ent, it  has  stood  a  monument  of  his  strong  faith  and 
great  humanity.  Its  origin  was  entirely  providential. 
It  was  already  a  custom  in  Halle  for  the  poor  to  con- 
vene every  week  at  a  stated  time,  and  receive  the  alms 
which  had  been  contributed  for  their  support.  Francke 
eaw  their  weekly  gatherings,  and  resolved  to  improve 


96  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  occasion  by  religious  teaching.  But  their  children 
were  also  ignorant,  and  there  was  no  hope  that  the 
parents  would  be  able  to  educate  them.  So  he  resolved 
to  do  something  also  in  this  direction,  and  secured  some 
money  for  this  purpose.  But  yet  the  parents  did  not 
thus  apply  it ;  whereupon  he  placed  a  box  in  his  own 
dwelling,  that  all  who  visited  him  might  contribute. 
He  knew  that  then  he  would  have  the  personal  distri- 
bution of  such  funds.  During  three  months  one  person 
deposited  four  thalers  and  sixteen  groschen ;  when 
Francke  exclaimed,  "  That  is  a  noble  thing — something 
good  must  be  established — with  this  money  I  will  found 
a  school."  Two  thalers  were  spent  for  twenty-seven 
books ;  but  the  children  brought  back  only  four  out  of 
the  whole  number  that  they  had  taken  home.  New 
books  were  bought,  and  henceforth  it  was  required  that 
they  be  left  in  the  room.  At  first  Francke's  own  study 
was  the  book  depository  and  school-room ;  but  in  a 
short  time  his  pupils  so  greatly  increased  that  he: 
hired  adjacent  accommodations.  Voluntary  contribu- 
tions came  in  freely ;  new  buildings  were  erected,  and 
teachers  provided ;  and  before  the  death  of  the  founder, 
the  enterprise  had  grown  into  a  mammoth  institution, 
celebrated  throughout  Europe,  and  scattering  the  seeds 
of  truth  into  all  lands.1  It  became  a  living  proof  that 
Pietism  was  not  only  able  to  combat  the  religious  errors 

1  Schmid,  Geschichte  des  Pietismus,  pp.  290-293.  How  greatly  thi? 
movement  was  favored  by  Providence,  may  be  seen  from  the  Report 
presented  to  King  Frederick  William  I,  shortly  after  Francke's  death  :— 
1 .  The  Normal  School  with  82  scholars  and  70  teachers ;  2.  The  Latin 
School  of  the  Orphan  House,  with  3  Inspectors,  32  teachers,  400  scholars, 
and  10  servants ;  3.  The  German  Citizens'  school,  with  4  Inspectors,  102 
Teachers,  1725  Boys  and  Girls  ;  4.  Orphan  Children,  134,  and  10  overseers  ; 

5.  Number  accommodated  at  the  tables,  251  students,  3600  poor  children  ; 

6.  Furniture,  Apothecary,  Bookstore,  employing  53  persons ;  7.  Institution 
for  women  unable  to  work. 


SPREAD    OF   PIETISM.  97 

of  the  times  but  also  to  grapple  with  the  grave  wants 
of  common  life.  Is  not  that  a  good  and  safe  theology, 
which,  in  addition  to  teaching  truth,  can  also  clothe  the 
naked  and  feed  the  hungry  ?  Francke's  prayer,  so  often 
offered  in  some  secluded  corner  of  the  field  or  the  woods, 
was  answered  even  before  his  departure  from  labor  to 
reward ;  "  Lord,  give  me  children  as  plenteous  as  the 
dew  of  the  morning ;  as  the  sand  upon  the  sea-shore  ; 
as  the  stars  in  the  heavens  ;  so  numerous  that  I  cannot 
number  them !  " 

The  theological  instruction  of  Francke  and  his  co- 
adjutors in  the  University  of  Halle  was  very  influential. 
During  the  first  thirty  years  of  its  history  six  thousand 
and  thirty-four  theologians  were  trained  within  its 
walls,  not  to  speak  of  the  multitudes  who  received  a 
thorough  academic  and  religious  instruction  in  the 
Orphan  House.  The  Oriental  Theological  College, 
established  in  connection  with  the  University,  promoted 
the  study  of  Biblical  languages,  and  originated  the  first 
critical  edition  of  the  Hebrew  Bible.  Moreover,  it 
founded  missions  to  the  Jews  and  Mohammedans. 
From  Halle  streams  of  the  new  life  flowed  out  until 
there  were  traces  of  reawakening  throughout  Europe. 
First,  the  larger  cities  gave  signs  of  returning  faith ; 
and  the  universities  which  were  most  bitter  against 
Spener  were  influenced  by  the  power  of  the  teachings 
of  his  immediate  successors.  Switzerland  was  one  of 
the  first  countries  to  adopt  Pietism.  Zurich,  Basle, 
Berne,  and  all  the  larger  towns  received  it  with  glad- 
ness. It  penetrated  as  far  east  as  the  provinces  border- 
ing on  the  Baltic  Sea,  and  as  far  North  as  Denmark, 
Norway,  and  Sweden.  Many  of  the  Continental  courts 
welcomed  it,  and  Orphan  Houses,  after  the  model  of 
Francke's.  became   the   fashion  of  the  day.     The  Re- 


98  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

formed  church  was  influenced  and  impelled  by  it,  and 
even  England  and  the  Netherlands  indicated  a  strong 
sympathy  for  its  practical  and  evangelical  features.     No 
higher  tribute  can  be  paid  it  than  that  of  Tholuck,  who 
avers,  "  that  the  Protestant  church  of  Germany  has  never 
possessed  so  many  zealous  Christian  ministers  and  lay- 
men as  in  the  first  forty  years  of  the  eighteenth  century? 
There  are  two    names    intimately    connected   with 
Pietism  in  its  better  days,  which  it  would  be  improper 
to   pass  over.     Arnold,  the  historian  of   Pietism,  and 
Thomasius,  the  eminent  jurist.     They  were  both  alike 
dangerous  to  the    very  cause  they  sought  to  befriend. 
The  former,  in  his  History  of  Churches  and  Heretics, 
took  such  decided  ground  against  the  existing   church 
system  that  he  was  fairly  charged  with  being  a  Separa- 
tist.    He  attached  but  little  importance  to  dogmatics, 
despised  orthodoxy,  and  inveighed  against  the  church 
as  if   she  were  the  veriest  pest  in  the  land.     While  a 
student  at  Wittenberg  he  applied  himself  to  the  study 
of  Mysticism,  and  now  claimed  that  its  incorporation 
with  Pietism  was  the   only   salvation   of  Christianity. 
He  held  that  great  sins  had  existed  in  the  church  ever 
since  the  days  of  the  Apostles,  the  first  century  being 
the  only  period   when  it  enjoyed  comparative  purity. 
Thomasius,  very  naturally,  held  Arnold  in  high  esteem, 
and  lauded  his  services  in  the  following  language :  "  He 
is  the  only  man,  or  at  least  the  first,  who  has  avoided 
the  follies  into  which  others  have  fallen,  and  discov- 
ered and  fully  exposed  the   errors   which    have   been 
especially  committed  by  the  Englishman  Cave  ;  he  has 
maintained  that  the  Church  of  Christ,  with  respect  to 
life  and  conduct,  had  begun  to   fall  into  decay  imme- 
diately  after  the  ascension    of   our  Saviour,   and   still 
more  after  the  death  of   the  Apostles,  and   that  this 


THOMASIUS.  99 

degeneracy  had  enormously  increased  since  tbe  age  of 
Constantine  the  Great."1 

Thomasius,  though  not  personally  connected  with 
Pietism,  gave  it  all  his  influence.  He  was  Director  of 
the  University  of  Halle,  and  defended  the  Pietists  from 
the  standpoint  of  statesmanship.  He  believed  Pietism 
the  only  means  of  uprooting  the  long-existing  corrup- 
tions of  education,  society,  and  religion.  He  opposed 
the  custom  of  teaching  and  lecturing  in  Latin,  warmly 
advocating  the  use  of  French,  and  subsequently  of  Ger- 
man. He  wished  to  cultivate  the  German  spirit,  and 
spared  no  pains  to  accomplish  his  purpose.  While  yet 
a  teacher  at  Leipzig  he  announced  a  course  of  lectures 
to  be  delivered  in  the  German  language.  The  outcry 
was  great  against  him ;  but  he  persevered,  and  hence- 
forth delivered  all  his  lectures  in  his  mother  tongue. 
Since  his  time  the  use  of  Latin,  as  a  colloquial,  has 
gradually  decreased,  and  at  the  present  day  the  German 
is  the  chief  language  employed  at  the  universities. 
Thomasius  was  also  the  first  to  combat  the  system  of 
prosecutions  for  witchcraft,  and  the  application  of  tor- 
ture in  criminal  trials.  He  was  a  thorough  and  indefati- 
gable reformer.  His  name  was  a  tower  of  strength  in 
his  generation ;  and  he  left  a  vivid  impress  upon  the 
German  mind  of  the  eighteenth  century.  He  published 
many  works,  some  of  which  were  directed  against  the 
ministry  because  of  their  neglect  of  duty. 

A    new   generation  of    professors   arose   in   Halle. 
C  B.  Michaelis,  the  younger  Francke,  Freilinghausen 
the  elder  Knapp,  Callenberg,  and  Bauingarten,  took  th 
place  of  their  more  vigorous  predecessors.     It,  is   de- 
plorable to  see  how  Pietism  now  began  to  lose  its  first 
power  and  earnest  spirit.     The  persistent  inquiry  into 

1  Schmid,  Geschichte  des  Pietismus,  pp.  475-486. 


100  HISTOR1    OF   RATIONALISM. 

scriptural  truth  passed  over  into  a  tacit  acquiescence  of 
the  understanding.  Eeliance  was  placed  on  the  convic- 
tions, more  than  on  the  fruits  of  study.  Spener  had 
blended  the  emotions  of  the  mind  and  heart,  reason  and 
faith,  harmoniously ;  but  the  later  Pietists  cast  off  the 
former  and  blindly  followed  the  latter.  Hence  :hey 
soon  found  themselves  indulging  in  superstition,  and 
repeating  many  of  the  errors  of  some  of  the  most  de- 
luded Mystics.  Science  was  frowned  upon,  because 
of  its  supposed  conflict  with  the  letter  of  Scripture. 
The  language  of  Spener  and  Francke,  which  was  full 
of  practical  earnestness,  came  into  disuse.  Definitions 
became  loose  and  vague.  The  Collegia,  which  had  done 
so  much  good,  now  grew  formal,  cold,  and  disputatious. 
The  missions,  which  had  begun  very  auspiciously,  dwin- 
dled from  want  of  means  and  men.  External  life  be- 
came pharisaical.  Great  weight  was  attached  to  long 
prayers.  A  Duke  of  Coburg  required  the  masters  of 
schools  to  utter  a  long  prayer  in  his  presence,  as  a  test 
of  fitness  for  advancement.  Pietism  grew  mystical, 
ascetic,  and  superstitious.  Some  of  its  advocates  and 
votaries  made  great  pretensions  to  holiness  and  unusual 
gifts.  This  had  a  tendency  to  bring  the  system  into 
disrepute  in  certain  quarters,  though  the  good  influences 
that  it  had  exerted  still  existed  and  increased.  It 
might  disappear,  but  the  good  achieved  by  it  would 
live  after  it.  But  a  strong  effort  was  made  by  Frederic 
William  I.  to  maintain  its  prominence  and  weight 
From  1729  to  1736,  he  continued  his  edict  that  no  Luther- 
an theologian  should  be  appointed  in  a  Prussian  pulpit 
who  had  not  studied  at  least  two  years  in  Halle,  and  re- 
ceived from  the  faculty  a  testimonial  of  his  state  of  grace. 
But  when  he  was  succeeded  by  Frederic  II.,  commonly 
called  Frederic  the  Great,  that  University  no  longer  en- 


BENGEL.  101 

joyed  the  royal  patronage,  and  Halle,  instead  of  being 
the  school  of  practical  piety  and  scriptural  study,  de- 
generated into  a  seminary  of  Rationalism. 

It  was  charged  against  the  Pietists  that  they  wrote 
but  little.  Writing  was  not  their  mission.  It  was 
theirs  to  act,  to  reform  the  practical  life  and  faith  of  the 
people,  not  to  waste  all  their  strength  in  a  war  of 
books.  They  wrote  what  they  needed  to  carry  out 
their  lofty  aim  ;  and  this  was,  perhaps,  sufficient.  They 
did  lack  profundity  of  thought ;  but,  let  it  be  remem- 
bered that  their  work  was  restorative,  not  initial. 
Pietism,  though  it  ceased  its  aggressive  power  after 
Francke  and  Thomasius,  was  destined  to  exert  a  repro- 
ductive power  long  afterwards.  Prom  their  day  to  the 
present,  whenever  there  has  arisen  a  great  religious 
want,  the  heart  of  the  people  has  been  directed  towards 
this  same  agency  as  a  ground  of  hope.  Whatever  be 
said  against  it,  it  cannot  be  denied  that  it  has  succeeded 
in  finding  a  safe  lodgment  in  the  affections  of  the  evan- 
gelical portion  of  the  German  church. 

Witness  Bengel,  who  was  a  Pietist  of  the  Spener 
school.  He  was  warmly  devoted  to  the  spread  of  prac- 
tical truth  and  a  correct  understanding  of  the  Bible. 
Kahnis  says  of  him  :  "  We  might  indeed  call  conscien- 
tiousness the  fundamental  virtue  of  Bengel.  Whatever 
lie  utters,  be  it  in  science,  or  life,  is  more  mature,  more 
well-weighed,  more  pithy,  more  consecrated  than  most 
of  what  his  verbose  age  has  uttered.  In  the  great  he 
saw  the  little,  in  the  little  the  great."  In  the  present 
century  the  church  has  had  recourse  to  Pietism  as  its 
only  relief  from  a  devastating  Rationalism.  Not  the 
Pietism  of  Spener  and  Francke,  we  acknowledge,  but 
the  same  general  current  belonging  to  both.  Its  organ 
was  the  Evangelical  Church  Gazette  ^m  1827,  and  among 


102  HISTOEY   OF   KATIONALISM. 

the  celebrities  who  attached  themselves  to  it  we  find 
the  names  of  Heinroth,  von  Meyer,  Schubert,  von  Rau- 
mer,  Steffens,  Schnorr,  and  Olivier. 

Pietism  lacked  a  homogeneous  race  of  teachers. 
Here  lay  the  secret  of  its  overthrow.  Had  the  founders 
been  succeeded  by  men  of  much  the  same  spirit,  and 
equally  strong  intellect,  its  existence  would  have  been 
guaranteed,  as  far  as  anything  religious  can  be  promised 
m  a  country  where  there  is  a  state  church  to  control 
the  individual  conscience.  The  great  mistake  of  Luther- 
anism  was  in  failing  to  adopt  it  as  its  child.  The  skepti- 
cal germ  which  soon  afterwards  took  root,  gave  evidence 
that  it  could  prove  its  overthrow  for  a  time,  at  least ; 
but  the  evils  of  Rationalism  were  partially  anticipated 
by  the  practical  teachings  of  the  Pietists.  Rationalism 
in  Germany,  without  Pietism  as  its  forerunner,  would 
have  been  fatal  for  centuries.  But  the  relation  of  these 
tendencies,  so  plainly  seen  in  the  ecclesiastical  history 
of  Germany,  is  one  of  long  standing.  From  the  days 
of  Neo-Platonism  to  the  present  they  have  existed,  the 
good  to  balance  the  evil,  Faith  to  limit  Reason.  They 
have  been  called  by  different  names ;  but  Christianity 
could  little  afford  to  do  without  it  or  its  equivalent,  in 
the  past ;  and  the  Church  of  the  Future  will  still  cling 
as  tenaciously  and  fondly  to  it  or  to  its  representative. 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE  POPULAR    PHILOSOPHY  OF  WOLFF— SKEPTICAL   TEN- 
DENCIES FROM  ABROAD. 

The  struggle  between  the  Pietists  and  the  Orthodox 
subsided  on  the  appearance  of  Wolff's  demonstrative 
philosophy.  The  church  was  glad  enough  to  offer  the 
friendly  hand  to  Pietism  when  she  saw  her  faith  threat- 
ened by  this  ruthless  foe ;  and  if  the  followers  of  Spener 
had  refused  to  accept  it,  their  success  would  have  been 
far  more  probable.  Leibnitz  was  the  father  of  Wolffs 
system.  Descartes  had  protested  against  any  external 
authority  for  the  first  principles  of  belief.  Leibnitz  and 
Spinoza  followed  him,  though  in  different  directions.1 
Leibnitz  had  no  system  in  reality,  and  it  is  only  from 
certain  well-known  views  on  particular  points  that  we 
can  infer  his  general  direction  of  opinion.  He  sought 
to  prove  the  conformity  of  reason  with  a  belief  in  reve- 
lation on  the  principle  that  two  truths  cannot  contradict 
each  other.  His  doctrine  of  monads  and  preestablished 
harmony  was  opposed  to  the  scriptural  and  ecclesiasti- 
cal doctrine  of  creation,  inasmuch  as  by  the  assumption 
of  the  existence  of  atoms  the  Creator  was  thrown  too 
much  in  the  shade.2  He  wrote  his  Theodicee  for  the 
benefit  of  learned  and  theological  circles,  and  both  as  a 

1  Farrar,  Critical  History  of  Free  Thought,  p.  214. 
3  Hagenbach,  History  of  Doctrines,  vol.  2,  p.  340. 


104  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

statesman  and  author  he  acquired  great  celebrity  foi 
his  vast  acquirements  and  discriminating  mind. 

But  the  philosophy  of  Leibnitz  was  confined  to  the 
learned ;  and  had  it  been  left  solely  to  itself,  it  is  prob- 
able that  it  would  never  have  attracted  great  attention 
or  possessed  much  importance  in  the  history  of  thought. 
But  Wolff,  who  studied  all  his  works  with  the  greatest 
care,  deduced  from  them  certain  summaries  of  argu- 
ment, which,  with  such  others  of  his  own  as  he  felt  dis- 
posed to  incorporate  with  them,  he  published  and 
taught.  Whatever  censure  we  may  cast  upon  Wolff, 
we  cannot  ignore  his  good  intentions.  Even  before  his 
birth,  he  had  been  consecrated  by  his  father  to  the 
service  of  God  ;  and  when  he  was  old  enough  to  mani- 
fest his  own  taste,  he  showed  a  strong  predilection  for 
theological  study.  He  says  of  himself :  "  Having  been 
devoted  to  the  study  of  theology  by  a  vow,  I  also  had 
chosen  it  for  myself;  and  my  intention  has  all  along 
been  to  serve  God  in  the  ministry,  even  when  I  was 
already  professor  at  Halle,  until  at  length  against  my 
will  I  was  led  away  from  it,  God  having  arranged  cir- 
cumstances in  such  a  manner  that  I  could  not  carry  out 
this  intention.  But  having  lived  in  my  native  place, 
Breslau,  among  the  Catholics,  and  having  perceived 
from  my  very  childhood  the  zeal  of  the  Lutherans  and 
Roman  Catholics  against  one  another,  the  idea  was 
always  agitating  my  mind,  whether  it  would  not  be 
possible  so  distinctly  to  show  the  truth  in  theology  that 
it  would  not  admit  of  any  contradiction.  When  after- 
wards  I  learned  that  the  mathematicians  were  so  sure 
of  their  ground  that  every  one  must  acknowledge  it  to 
be  true,  I  was  anxious  to  study  mathematics,  for  the 
sake  of  the  method,  in  order  to  give  diligence  to  reduce 
theology  to  incontrovertible  certainty."     These  words 


\ 


wolff's  philosophy.  105 

explain  Wolff's  whole  system.  He  would  make  doctrine 
so  plain  by  mathematical  demonstration  that  it  must 
be  accepted.  But  the  poison  of  his  theory  lay  in  the 
assumption  that  what  could  not  be  mathematically 
demonstrated  was  either  not  true  or  not  fit  to  be  taught. 
He  sets  out  with  the  principle  that  the  human  intellect 
is  capable  of  knowing  truth.  He  divides  his  philosophy 
into  two  parts  :  first,  the  theoretical :  second,  the  prac- 
tical. The  former  he  subdivides  into  logic,  metaphysics, 
and  physics ;  the  latter  into  morals,  natural  right,  and 
politics.  He  admits  a  revelation,  and  proves  its  possi- 
bility by  maintaining  that  God  can  do  whatever  he 
wishes.  But  this  revelation  must  have  signs  in  itself, 
by  which  it  may  be  known.  First.  It  must  contain 
something  necessary  for  man  to  know,  which  he  cannot 
learn  in  any  other  way.  Second.  The  things  revealed 
must  not  be  opposed  to  the  divine  perfections,  and  they 
must  not  be  self-contradictory  :  a  thing  is  above  reason 
and  contrary  to  reason  when  opposed  to  these  prin- 
ciples. Third.  A  divine  revelation  can  contain  neither 
anything  which  contradicts  reason  and  experience,  nor 
anything  which  may  be  learned  from  them,  for  God  is 
omniscient, — he  knows  the  general  as  well  as  the  partic- 
ular, and  he  cannot  be  deceived.  Necessary  truths  are 
those  the  contrary  of  which  is  impossible ;  accidental 
truths,  those  of  which  the  contrary  is  impossible  only 
under  certain  conditions.  Now,  revelation  could  not 
contradict  necessary  truths ;  but  it  may  appear  to  con- 
tradict those  which  are  accidental.  Geometrical  truths 
are  necessary ;  and  therefore  revelation  could  not  oppose 
them  ;  but  as  accidental  truths  refer  to  the  changes  of 
natural  things,  it  follows  that  these  may  be  apparently 
contradicted  by  revelation;  though  if  we  search 
minutely,  we  shall  at  last  be  able  to  lift  the  veil  from 


106  HISTOEY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

the  contradictions.  Fourth.  Revelation  cannot  com 
niand  anything  contrary  to  the  laws  of  the  nature  of 
existence  and  of  the  mind,  for  whatever  is  opposed  to 
the  laws  of  nature  is  equally  opposed  to  those  of  reason. 
Fifth.  When  it  can  be  proved  that  he  who  declares  that 
he  has  received  a  divine  revelation  has  arrived  at  his 
knowledge  by  the  natural  use  of  his  mental  powers, 
then  his  declaration  cannot  be  considered  true.  Sixth. 
In  a  revelation  all  things  ought  to  be  expressed  in  such 
words,  or  by  such  signs,  that  he  who  is  the  object  of  it 
can  clearly  recognize  the  divine  action.  For  God  knows 
all  possible  symbolical  means  of  knowledge,  and  does 
nothing  without  a  purpose. 

These  views  "Wolff  taught  from  his  university-chair 
in  Halle,  and  disseminated  throughout  the  land  in  pub- 
lications under  various  titles.  He  aimed  to  reach  not 
only  the  young  theologians  and  all  who  were  likely  to 
wield  a  great  public  influence,  but  to  so  popularize  his 
system  that  the  unthinking  masses  might  become  his 
followers.  He  succeeded.  Even  Roman  Catholics  em- 
braced his  tenets,  and  he  was  accustomed  to  say,  with 
evident  satisfaction,  that  his  text-books  were  used  at 
Ingolstadt,  Vienna,  and  Rome.  The  glaring  defect  of 
his  philosophy  was  his  application  of  the  formal  logical 
process  to  theology.  He  reduced  the  examination  of 
truth  to  a  purely  mechanical  operation.  The  effect  was 
soon  seen.  When  his  students  began  to  fill  the  pulpits 
the  people  heard  cold  and  stately  logic,  extended  defini- 
tions, and  frequent  mathematical  phrases.  Think  of 
the  clergy  feeding  their  flocks  on  such  food  as  the  fol 
lowing :  "  God — a  being  who  supports  all  the  world  at 
one  time  ;"  "  P reestablished  harmony — the  eternal  union 
of  things ;  "  "  Ratio  sufficiens — the  sufficient  ground  ;  " 
with    many  other  arid   definitions  of  the   same   class. 


WOLFF.  107 

One  preacher,  in  explaining  the  eighth  chapter  of  Mat- 
thew, thought  it  necessary,  when  noticing  the  fact  of 
Jesus  descending  the  mountain,  to  define  the  term 
mountain  by  declaring  it  to  be  "  a  veiy  elevated  place  ; " 
and,  when  discoursing  on  Jesus  stretching  forth  his 
hand  and  touching  the  leper,  to  affirm  that  "the  hand 
is  one  of  the  members  of  the  body."  It  is  astonishing 
how  quickly  the  popular  principles  and  teachings 
of  the  followers  of  Wolff  began  to  supplant  Pietism. 
In  the  university  and  the  pulpit  there  were  sad  and 
numerous  evidences  of  decline.  Perhaps  no  system  of 
philosophy  has  ever  penetrated  the  masses  as  did  this  of 
Wolff;  for  no  one  has  been  more  favored  with  cham- 
pions who  aimed  to  indoctrinate  the  unthinking.  Old 
terms,  which  had  been  used  by  the  first  Lutherans  and 
Reformed  in  common,  and  by  the  Pietists  with  such 
effectiveness,  were  now  abandoned  for  the  modern 
ones  of  these  innovators.  Everything  that  had  age 
on  its  side  was  rejected  because  of  its  age.  Even  the 
titles  of  books  were  fraught  with  copious  definitions. 
The  Wertheim  translation  of  the  Old  Testament  was 
published  under  the  extended  name  of  "The  Dwine 
Writings  before  the  time  of  Jesus,  the  Messiah.  The 
First  Part,  containing  the  Laics  of  the  Israels?  The 
Wolffian  adepts  wrote  for  Moabites,  Moabs ;  for  the 
Apostle  Peter,  Peter  the  Ambassador. 

Wolff's  life  was  full  of  incident.  The  first  publica- 
tions he  issued  after  his  appointment  to  the  math- 
ematical  professorship  were  on  subjects  within  his 
appropriate  sphere  of  instruction.  Here  he  first  ac- 
quired his  fundamental  principle  of  mathematical  de- 
monstration applied  to  theology,  and  henceforth  his  mind 
was  bent  on  philosophical  and  theological  themes.  We 
are  reminded  of  the  same  process  of  mental  action  in 

9 


108  HISTOKY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Bishop  Colenso.  In  a  late  catalogue  of  his  works, 
we  have  counted  twelve  mathematical  text-books. 
These  are  at  least  an  index  of  his  attachment  to 
mathematical  demonstration ;  and  it  is  not  surprising 
that  an  ill-regulated  mind  should  fall  into  Wolff's  error 
of  applying  the  same  method  to  the  Scriptures.  The 
Bishop's  works  find  their  exact  prototype  in  the  "  Rea- 
sonable Thoughts  of  God"  " Natural  Theology"  and 
"  Moral  Philosophy?  of  Christian  Wolff.  The  mathe- 
matical professor  at  Halle  was  not  long  in  exposing  his 
views ;  and  on  more  than  one  occasion  gave  umbrage 
to  his  Pietistic  associates.  His  offence  reached  its 
climax  when  he  delivered  a  public  discourse  on  the 
Morals  of  Confucius,  which  he  applauded  most  enthu 
siastically.  The  Kector  of  the  university,  Francke,  re- 
quested the  use  of  the  manuscript,  which  the  author 
refused  to  grant.  Influence  was  brought  to  bear  against 
Wolff  at  court ;  and  when  it  was  represented  that  if  his 
teachings  were  propagated  any  further  they  would  pro. 
|duce  defection  in  the  army,  Frederic  William  I.  issued  a 
\decree  of  deposition  from  his  chair,  and  banishment  from 
his  dominions  within  forty-eight  hours,  on  penalty  of 
death.  This  occurred  in  1723.  After  Frederic  the 
Great  ascended  the  throne,  and  began  to  countenance 
the  increasing  skeptical  tendencies  of  the  day,  he  re- 
called him,  in  1740,  to  his  former  position.  He  was  re- 
ceived, it  is  true,  with  some  enthusiasm,  but  his  success 
as  a  lecturer  and  preacher  had  passed  its  zenith.  Of 
his  reception  at  Halle  after  his  long  absence  he  thu& 
writes,  with  no  little  sense  of  self-gratulation  :  "  A  groat 
multitude  of  students  rode  out  of  the  city  to  meet  me, 
in  order  to  invite  me  formally.  They  were  attended 
by  six  glittering  postillions.  All  the  villagers  along 
the  roadside  came  out  of  their  towns,  and  anxiously 


WOLFFS    INFLUENCE. 


109 


awaited  my  arrival.  When  we  reached  Halle,  all  the 
streets  and  market-places  were  filled  with  an  immense 
concourse  of  people,  and  I  celebrated  my  jubilee  amidst 
a  universal  jubilee.  In  the  street,  opposite  the  house 
which  I  had  rented  as  my  place  of  residence,  there  was 
gathered  a  band  of  music,  which  received  me  and  my 
attendants  with  joyous  strains.  The  press  of  the  mul- 
titude was  so  great  that  I  could  hardly  descend  from 
my  carriage  and  find  my  way  to  my  rooms.  My  arrival 
was  announced  on  the  same  evening  to  the  professors 
and  all  the  dignitaries  of  the  city.  On  the  following 
day  they  called  upon  me,  and  gave  me  warm  greetings 
of  welcome  and  esteem.  Among  all  the  rest  I  was  re- 
ceived and  welcomed  by  Dr.  Lange,  who  wished  me  the 
greatest  success,  and  assured  me  of  his  friendship ;  of 
course  I  promised  to  visit  him  in  return." 

Verily  this  was  an  epoch  in  theological  history. 
It  proves  how  thoroughly  the  Wolffian  philosophy  had 
impregnated  the  common  classes.  They  had  learned  its 
principles  thoroughly,  and  the  lapse  of  more  than  a  cen- 
tury has  not  fully  disabused  them  of  its  errors.  The  phi- 
losophy of  Kant  was  the  first  to  supplant  the  Wolfian 
in  learned  circles ;  but  Kant  has  had  no  such  popular 
interpreter  as  Wolff  was  of  Leibnitz,  and  hence  his  influ- 
ence, though  deep  where  prevalent,  was  felt  in  a  more 
limited  sphere.  Wolff  cannot  be  termed  a  nationalist 
in  the  common  acceptation  of  the  term,  though  his  doc- 
trines contributed  to  the  growth  of  neological  thinking. 
Had  he  been  theologian  alone,  and  applied  his  prin- 
ciples to  the  interpretation  of  Scripture,  he  would  have 
done  much  of  Semler's  work.  It  was,  therefore,  the 
latter  and  not  the  former  whom  we  would  denominate 
the  father  of  Rationalism.  Moreover,  Wolff  manifested 
a  strict  obeservance  of  the  ecclesiastical  institutions  of 


nO  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

his  day,  and  always  professed  the  warmest  attachment 
to  the  church, — which  was  anything  but  the  fact,  as 
far  as  the  followers  of  Semler  are  concerned.  Wolff 
wrote  on  a  circular  announcing  some  university  celebra- 
tion the  following  words,  which  indicate  the  habit 
of  his  life  :  "  I  see,  and  would  like  to  be  present.  Yet 
as  I  have  purposed  to  partake  of  the  Lord's  Supper  on 
the  same  day  I  do  not  know  whether  I  shall  be  able  to 
be  present,  inasmuch  as  I  should  not  like  to  change  my 
intention  ;  yet  I  will  consider  the  matter  with  my  min- 
ister.    Signed,  Christian  Wolff,  1717." 

Of  the  relations  of  the  Wolffian  philosophy  to  the 
theology  of  one  century  ago,  and  of  its  general  Ration- 
alistic bearing,  Mr.  Farrar  says,  "The  system  soon 
became  universally  dominant.  Its  orderly  method 
possessed  the  fascination  which  belongs  to  any  encyclo- 
paedic view  of  human  knowledge.  It  coincided,  too, 
with  the  tone  of  the  age.  Really  opposed,  as  Carte- 
sianisui  has  been  in  France,  to  the  scholasticism  which 
still  reigned,  its  dogmatic  form  nevertheless  bore  such 
external  similarity  to  it  that  it  fell  in  with  the  old  liter- 
ary tastes.  The  evil  effects  which  it  subsequently  pro- 
duced in  reference  to  religion  were  due  only  to  the 
point  of  view  which  it  ultimately  induced.  Like 
Locke's  work  on  the  reasonableness  of  Christianity,  it 
stimulated  intellectual  speculation  concerning  revela- 
tion. By  suggesting  attempts  to  deduce  d  priori  the 
necessary  character  of  religious  truths,  it  turned  men's 
attention  more  than  ever  away  from  spiritual  religion 
to  theology.  The  attempt  to  demonstrate  everything 
caused  dogmas  to  be  viewed  apart  from  their  practical 
aspect ;  and  men  being  compelled  to  discard  the  pre- 
vious method  of  drawing  philosophy  out  of  Scripture, 
an  independent  philosophy  was  created,  and  Scripture 


THE  WOLFFIAN  SCHOOL.  Ill 

compared  with  its  discoveries.  Philosophy  no  longer 
relied  on  Scripture,  but  Scripture  rested  on  philosophy. 
Dogmatic  theology  was  made  a  part  of  metaphysical 
philosophy.  This  was  the  mode  in  which  Wolff's  phi- 
losoph}r  ministered  indirectly  to  the  creation  of  the  dis- 
position to  make  scriptural  dogmas  submit  to  reason, 
which  was  denominated  Rationalism.  The  empire  of 
it  was  undisputed  during  the  whole  of  the  middle  part 
of  the  century,  until  it  was  expelled,  toward  the  close, 
by  the  partial  introduction  of  Locke's  philosophy,  and 
of  the  system  of  Kant,  as  well  as  by  the  growth  of 
classical  erudition,  and  of  a  native  literature."1 

Wolff  was  succeeded  by  a  school  of  no  ordinary 
ability.  But  his  disciples  did  not  strictly  follow  him  ; 
they  went  not  only  the  length  that  he  did,  but  much 
further.  Their  thinking  and  literary  labor  circled 
about  inspiration.  It  was  evident  that  they  were  intent 
upon  solving  the  problem  and  handing  the  doctrine 
over  to  the  world  as  entitled  to  respect  and  unalterable. 
Baumgarten  was  the  connecting  link  between  the  Piet- 
ism of  Spener  and  the  Rationalism  of  Semler.  He 
was  the  successor  of  Wolff  in  the  university-chair  of 
Halle,  and,  as  such,  the  eyes  of  the  people  were  turned 
toward  him.  His  acquirements  were  versatile,  for  he 
studied  every  subject  of  theology  with  poetic  enthusiasm. 
Nor  was  he  a  superficial  student  merely  ;  and  his  oppo- 
nents well  knew  that  in  him  they  had  found  no  mean 
adept  in  philosophy,  theology,  hermeneutics  and  ecclesias- 
tical history.  His  writings  bear  a  strong  impress  of  Illu- 
minism,  but  he  contributed  most  to  the  formation  of 
Rationalistic  theology  by  training  Semler  for  his  great 
destructive  mission.  He  acknowledged  the  presence  of 
the  Holy  Spirit  in  Scripture,  but  reduced  inspiration  to 

1  Critical  History  of  Free  Thought,  pp.  215-216. 


112  HISTORY   OF    RATIONALISM. 

an  influence  which  God  exercises  over  the  mental  facul- 
ties. Both  he  and  Tollner  declared  that  the  Spirit  had 
permitted  each  writer  to  compose  according  to  the  pe- 
culiar powers  of  his  mind,  and  to  arrange  facts  accord- 
ing to  his  own  comprehension  of  them. 

Tollner  was  a  follower  of  Baumgarten.  He  was  not 
intent  upon  any  innovating  theories  as  much  as  he  was 
desirous  to  harmonize  the  old  ecclesiastical  system  with 
the  new  philosophy.  He  had  some  views  in  common 
with  Wolff;  but  he  totally  differed  from  him  in  his  con- 
ception of  mathematical  demonstration  of  theology,  and 
maintained  that  theology  cannot  be  mathematically 
demonstrated,  but  that  its  integrity  and  worth  depend 
solely  upon  historical  testimony.  Does  the  Christian 
system  have  the  authority  of  history  for  its  defence  ? 
If  so,  it  will  stand  the  test  of  universal  opposition  ; 
but,  if  not,  it  will  fall  of  its  own  weight.  The  ten- 
dency of  his  deductions  was  negative,  and  hence  we 
rank  him  as  no  ordinary  agent  toward  the  growth  of 
historic  doubt.  Here  we  behold  the  germ  of  such 
thinking  as  developed  in  Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus  in  the 
present  century.  Tollner  held  that  Scripture  is  com- 
posed of  two  senses,  the  natural  and  revealed.  That 
which  is  natural  is  subject  to  criticism  ;  but  the  reveal- 
ed or  spiritual  light  is  always  clearer,  and  does  not  call 
for  much  inquiry.  There  may  be  differences  between 
the  two,  but  there  can  be  no  contradiction.  "  The  revela- 
tion in  Scripture,"  he  says,  "  is  a  greater  and  more  per- 
fect means  of  salvation.  Both  the  natural  light  and 
revelation  lead  the  man  who  follows  them  to  salvation. 
Scripture  only  more  so? 

The  historian  cannot  fail  to  observe  a  systematic  and 
steadfast  development  of  skepticism  in  the  lands  south 
and  west  of  Germany.     Many  causes  contributed  to  its 


ENGLISH   DEISM.  113 

growth  in  Italy,  whose  prestige  in  war,  extensive  and 
still  increasing  commerce,  and  ambitious  and  gifted 
rulers,  were  a  powerful  stimulus  to  vigorous  thought. 
The  classics  became  the  favorite  study,  and  all  the 
writings  of  the  ancients  were  seized  with  avidity, 
to  yield,  as  far  as  they  might,  their  treasure  of  philoso- 
phy, history  and  poetry.  Leo  X.  was  notoriously  skep- 
tical, and,  as  much  from  sympathy  as  pride,  surrounded 
himself  with  the  leading  spirits  of  the  literature  of 
the  times.  With  him  morality  was  no  recommenda- 
tion. Two  tendencies  took  positive  form,  as  the  result 
of  the  literary  tastes  of  the  court  and  thinking  classes  : 
first,  a  return  to  heathenism,  produced  by  the  study  of 
the  classics ;  and  second,  a  species  of  pantheism,  produced 
by  philosophy. 

We  now  come  to  the  Deism  of  England,  which  not 
only  succeeded  in  corrupting  the  spiritual  life  of  France, 
but  became  directly  incorporated  into  the  theology  of 
Germany.  It  was  the  so-called  philosophy  of  common 
sense.  The  most  thorough  German  writer  on  the 
subject,  Lechler,  has  well  denned  it,  "The  elevation 
of  natural  religion  to  be  the  standard  and  rule  of  all 
positive  religion,  an  elevation  which  is  supported  by 
free  examination  by  means  of  thinking."  It  started 
on  the  principle  that  reason  is  the  source  and  meas- 
ure of  truth  ;  and  therefore  discarded,  as  its  Rational- 
istic offspring  in  Germany,  whatever  was  miraculous  or 
supernatural  in  Christianity.  There  was  much  earnest- 
ness in  some  of  its  champions ;  nor  was  there  any  ab- 
sence of  warm  attachment  to  the  morality  and  religious 
influence  of  the  Scriptures.  Thus  it  differed  widely  from 
the  flippancy  and  frivolity  of  the  Deists  of  France. 
We  cannot,  however,  consider  Lord  Herbert's  serious 
reflections  on  the  publication  of  his  chief  work  as  a  fair 


114  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

specimen  of  the  tone  of  his  coadjutors.  The}T  were 
mostly  inferior  to  him  in  this  respect,  though  it  would 
not  be  safe  to  say  that  their  influence  on  the  public 
mind  of  England  was  less  baneful  than  his.  Having 
finished  his  book,  Tractatus  de  Veritate,  he  hesitated  be 
fore  committing  it  to  the  press.  "  Thus  filled,"  he  says, 
"  with  doubts,  I  was  on  a  bright  summer  day  sitting  in 
my  room  ;  my  window  to  the  south  was  open  ;  the  sun 
shone  brightly ;  not  a  breeze  was  stirring.  I  took  my 
book  on  Truth  into  my  hand,  threw  myself  on  my 
knees,  and  prayed  devoutly  in  the  words,  '  O  thou  one 
God,  thou  Author  of  this  light  which  now  shines  upon 
me,  thou  Giver  of  all  inward  light,  I  implore  thee,  ac- 
cording to  thine  infinite  mercy  to  pardon  my  request, 
which  is  greater  than  a  sinner  should  make.  I  am  not 
sufficiently  convinced  whether  I  may  publish  this  book 
or  not.  If  its  publication  shall  be  for  thy  glory,  I  be- 
seech thee  to  give  me  a  sign  from  Heaven.  If  not,  I 
will  suppress  it.'  I  had  scarcely  finished  these  words 
when  a  loud,  and  yet  at  the  same  time  a  gentle  sound 
came  from  heaven,  not  like  any  sound  on  earth.  This 
comforted  me  in  such  a  manner,  and  gave  me  such  a 
satisfaction,  that  I  considered  my  prayer  as  having  been 
heard." 

Deism  in  England  began  with  the  predominance 
given  to  nature  by  Bacon.  Locke  contributed  greatly 
to  its  formation  by  discarding  the  proof  of  Christianity 
by  miracles  and  supernatural  observations,  but  claimed 
that  nature  is  of  itself  sufficient  to  teach  it.  Hence, 
man  can  draw  all  necessary  faith  from  nature.  Lord 
Herbert,  of  Cherbury,  held  that  education  is  inconsistent 
with  true  religion,  since  the  earliest  pagan  times  mani- 
fested a  higher  state  of  morality  than  later  periods  of  cul- 
ture and  refinement.     Hobbes  considered   religion  only 


ENGLISH   DEISTS. 


115 


a  sort  of  police  force,  useful  solely  as  an  agent  of  the 
State  to  keep  the  people  within  bounds. 

Shaftesbury,  the  disciple  and  follower  of  Locke,  ad- 
dressed himself  by  his  style  to  the  higher  classes.  He 
cultivated  the  acquaintance  of  the  rising  leaders  of 
'■skepticism  in  France  and  Holland,  and  continued 
through  life  on  terms  of  cordial  intimacy  with  Bayle, 
Le  Clerc,  and  others  of  kindred  spirit.  He  was  relent- 
less in  his  attacks  on  revealed  religion.  His  hostility 
may  be  inferred  from  the  fact  that  Voltaire  termed 
him  even  too  bitter  an  opponent  of  Christianity. 
Warburton  says,  "  Mr.  Pope  told  me  that,  to  his  knowl- 
edge, The  Characteristics  have  done  more  harm  to  re- 
vealed religion  in  England  than  all  the  other  works 
of  infidelity  together."  Collins  contributed  more  than 
any  other  author  to  the  rise  of  Deism  in  France.  He 
applied  himself  to  the  overthrow  of  all  faith.  Ig- 
noring prophecy,  he  held  that  nothing  in  the  Old 
Testament  has  any  other  than  a  typical  or  allegorical 
bearing  upon  the  New  Testament. 

Wollaston's  creed  was  the  pursuit  of  happiness  by 
the  practice  of  reason  and  truth.  He  was  the  epicurean 
of  the  system  which  he  adopted,  and  sought  to  prove 
lhat  religion  is  wholly  independent  of  faith.  He  first 
published  a  brief  outline  of  his  views  in  a  limited  num- 
ber of  copies,  but  afterwards  prepared  a  new  and  en- 
larged edition.  Twenty  thousand  copies  were  sold,  and 
six  other  editions  found  a  ready  sale  between  1724  and 
1738.  Woolston  strove  to  bring  the  miracles  of  Christ 
into  contempt.  Mandeville  and  Morgan,  contemporaries 
of  Woolston,  wrote  against  the  state  religion.  Of  Chubb's 
views  we  can  gather  sufficiently  from  his  three  princi- 
ples :  First.  That  Christ  requires  of  men  that,  with  all 
their  heart  and  all   their   soul,  they  should  follow  the 


116  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

eternal  and  unchangeable  precepts  of  natural  morality. 
Second.  That  men,  if  they  transgress  the  laws  of  moral. 
ity,  must  give  proofs  of  true  and  genuine  repentance, 
because  without  such  repentance,  forgiveness  or  pardon 
is  impossible.  Third.  In  order  more  deeply  to  impress 
these  principles  upon  the  minds  of  men,  and  give  them 
a  greater  influence  upon  their  course  of  action,  Jesus 
Christ  has  announced  to  mankind,  that  God  hath  ap- 
pointed a  day  wherein  he  will  judge  the  world  in 
righteousness,  and  acquit  and  condemn,  reward  or  pun- 
ish, according  as  their  conduct  has  been  guided  by  the 
precepts  which  he  has  laid  down.  With  Bolingbroke's 
name  closes  the  succession  of  the  elder  school  of  Eng- 
lish Deists.  He  wrote  against  the  antiquity  of  faith, 
showing  bitter  hostility  to  the  Old  Testament.  His  aim, 
in  addition  to  this  antagonism  to  revelation,  was  to  found 
a  selfish  philosophy. 

Many  of  the  works  by  these  writers  were  ill- writ- 
ten and  lacked  depth  of  thought.  Some  were,  how- 
ever, masterpieces  of  original  thinking  and  writing. 
The  style  of  Mandeville,  for  example,  has  been 
eulogized  extravagantly  both  by  Hazlitt  and  Lord 
Macaulay. 

It  cannot  be  expected  that  a  movement  so  extensive 
as  this,  and  participated  in  by  the  leading  literary  men 
of  the  day  would  be  without  its  influence  abroad.  Its 
first  effect  was  to  elicit  great  opposition  ;  and  numerous 
replies  poured  in  from  every  quarter.  Toland's  Chris 
tianity  Not  Mysterious  was  combated  in  the  year 
1760  by  fifty -four  rejoinders  in  England,  France  and 
Germany.  Up  to  the  same  period,  Tindal's  Christianity 
as  Old  as  the  World  was  greeted  with  one  hundred  and 
six  opponents.  The  Germans  repulsed  these  tendencies 
bravely  at  first,  and  among  others  was   the  gifted  and 


ENGLISH    DEISM   EST   FEANCE.  117 

versatile  Mosheini,  who  delivered  public  lectures  against 
the  influx  of  Deistical  speculations.  But  gradually 
translations  were  made,  and  the  Germans  were  soon 
able  to  read  those  works  for  themselves.  All  the 
Deists  were  rendered  into  their  language,  and  some 
were  honored  with  many  translators.  True,  there 
were  replies  from  the  theologians  of  England  imme- 
diately upon  the  appearance  of  the  works  of  the  lead- 
ing Deists;  but  many  of  them  were  very  feeble,  the 
puny  blows  doing  more  harm  than  good.  When  these 
rejoinders  came  to  be  translated  they  had  almost  as  de- 
leterious an  influence  as  if  they  had  been  panegyrics  in- 
stead of  well-meant  thrusts.  John  Pye  Smith  says, 
"Translations  were  made  of  our  Deistical  writers  of 
that  time,  and  of  a  large  number  of  vindications  of 
Christianity  which  were  published  by  some  English  di- 
vines of  note  in  reply  to  Collins,  Tindal,  Morgan  and  their 
tribe ;  and  which,  in  addition  to  their  insipid  and  un- 
impassioned  character,  involved  so  much  of  timid  apology 
and  unchristian  concession  that  they  rather  aided  than 
obstructed  the  progress  of  infidelity."  Through  the  in- 
fluence of  Baumgarten  and  others  Deism  now  gained 
great  favor  in  Germany.  Toland  was  personally  wel- 
comed, flattered  and  honored  at  the  very  court — that  of 
Frederic  William  I. — which  had  banished  Wolf,  and 
made  adherence  to  his  doctrines  a  bar  to  all  preferment. 
There  was  a  speedy  adoption  of  English  Deism  by 
France,  though  the  French  had  manifested  strong  at- 
tachment to  skepticism  as  far  back  as  the  illustrious 
reign  of  Louis  XIV.,  whose  court  had  dictated  religion 
and  literature  to  Europe.  It  was  in  1688  that  Le 
Vasser  wrote :  "  People  only  speak  of  reason,  good  taste, 
the  force  of  intellect,  of  the  advantage  of  those  who 
put  themselves  above  the  prejudices  of  education  and 


118  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

of  the  society  in  which  they  were  born  Pyrrhonism 
is  now  the  fashion  above  everything  else.  People  think 
that  the  legitimate  exercise  of  the  mind  consists  in  not 
believing  rashly,  and  in  knowing  how  to  doubt  many 
things.  What  can  be  more  intolerable  and  humiliating 
than  to  see  our  pretended  great  men  boast  themselves 
of  believing  nothing,  and  of  calling  those  people  simple 
and  credulous  who  have  not  perhaps  examined  the  first 
proofs  of  religion  ?  "  The  condition  of  things  was  no 
better  in  the  reign  of  Louis  XV.,  nor  indeed  at  any  time 
during  the  eighteenth  century.  It  could  not  be  ex 
pected  that  Rousseau  would  overpaint  the  picture ;  yet 
in  his  La  Nouvelle  Helolse  we  find  this  language  :  "  No 
disputing  is  here  heard — that  is,  in  the  literary  coteries- 
no  epigrams  are  made ;  they  reason,  but  not  in  the  stiff 
professional  tone  ;  you  find  fine  jokes  without  puns,  wit 
with  reason,  principles  with  freaks,  sharp  satire  and 
delicate  flattery  with  serious  rules  of  morality.  They 
speak  of  everything  in  order  that  every  one  may  have 
to  say  something,  but  they  never  exhaust  the  questions 
raised ;  from  the  dread  of  getting  tedious  they  bring 
them  forth  only  occasionally,  shorten  them  hastily,  and 
never  allow  a  dispute  to  arise.  Every  one  informs 
himself,  enjoys  himself,  and  departs  from  the  others 
pleased.  But  what  is  it  that  is  learned  from  these  in- 
teresting conversations  ?  One  learns  to  defend  with 
spirit  the  cause  of  untruth,  to  shake  with  philosophy  all 
the  principles  of  virtue,  to  gloss  over  with  fine  syllogisms 
onds  passions  and  prejudices  in  order  to  give  a  modern 
shape  to  error.  When  any  one  speaks,  it  is  to  a  certain 
extent  his  dress,  not  himself,  that  has  an  opinion  ;  and 
the  speaker  will  change  it  as  often  as  he  will  change 
his  profession.  Give  him  a  tie-wig  today,  to-morrow  a 
uniform,  and  the  day  after  a  mitre,  and  you  will  have 


VOLTAIRE   AND    ROUSSEAU.  119 

him  defend,  in  succession,  the  laws,  despotism,  and  the 
Inquisition.  There  is  one  kind  of  reason  for  the  lawyer, 
another  for  the  financier,  and  a  third  for  the  soldier. 
Thus,  no  one  ever  says  what  he  thinks,  but  what,  on 
account  of  his  interest,  he  would  make  others  believe ; 
and  his  zeal  for  truth  is  only  a  mask  for  selfishness." 

This  was  the  basis  upon  which  Voltaire  and  Rousseau 
built  in  France.  What  wonder  that  the  one  with  his 
pungent  sarcasm,  popular  style  and  display  of  philoso- 
phy, and  the  other  with  his  morbid  sentimentalism, 
should  become  the  real  monarchs  not  only  of  their  own 
land,  but  of  cultivated  circles  throughout  the  Con- 
tinent ?  There  was  not  the  slightest  sympathy  be- 
tween these  two  men,  for  they  hated  each  other  cor- 
dially, and  each  was  jealous  of  the  other's  fame  and 
genius.  Voltaire  said  one  day  to  Rousseau,  who  was 
showing  him  an  Ode  Addressed  to  Posterity,  "  This  is 
a  letter  which  will  never  reach  the  place  of  its  address.'* 
At  another  time,  Voltaire  having  read  a  satire  of  his 
own  composition  to  Rousseau,  the  latter  advised  him 
to  "  suppress  it  lest  it  should  be  imagined  that  he  had 
lost  his  abilities  and  preserved  only  his  virulence." 
But  Voltaire  was  inordinately  ambitious ;  he  longed  to 
rise  to  fame,  as  on  the  wings  of  the  eagle.  "  How  un- 
worthy, and  how  dull  of  appreciation  is  sluggish  France," 
thought  he.  For  her  rewards  he  had  toiled,  and 
thought,  and  racked  his  brain  for  years.  But  she  was 
stern,  and  would  not  honor  him.  He  therefore  became 
disgusted  with  his  native  land,  and  set  out  for  England, 
whose  scientific  and  theological  literature  had  already 
fired  his  mind.  George  I.  and  the  Princess  of  Wales, 
afterward  Queen  Caroline,  distinguished  him  by  their 
attentions,  and  relieved  his  poverty  by  securing  large 
subscriptions  to  his  works.     It  was  here  that  he  com 


220  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

inenced  to  lay  up  a  princely  fortune ;  but  it  was  not 
until  the  close  of  his  long  and  stirring  life  that  he  for- 
swore his  miserly  habits.  He  found  in  the  deistical  lit- 
erature of  England  everything  that  could  suit  his  taste 
and  ambition.  "  Here,"  reasoned  he  to  himself,  "  I  find 
what  I  never  dreamed  of  before.  France  would  not 
tolerate  these  thoughts  if  her  own  sons  had  given  birth 
to  them;  but  this  is  England,  and  we  Frenchmen  le- 
spect  the  thinking  of  the  English  mind.  I  will  not 
translate  much,  but  I  will  go  to  work  with  hearty 
earnestness,  and  reproduce  in  French  literature  what  I 
find  worthy  of  it  in  these  free-thinking  masters.  May 
be,  after  all,  I  shall  become  a  great  man."  The  plan 
succeeded.  Voltaire,  on  his  return,  became  more  out- 
spoken in  his  infidelity.  His  star  ascended ;  and  he 
ruled,  not  by  original  but  by  borrowed  lustre. 

Frederic  the  Great  of  Prussia  was  captivated  by  the 
skeptical  and  literary  celebrity  of  Voltaire.  The  latter 
was  not  long  back  again  in  France  before  his  selfish 
sensitiveness  imagined  that  all  the  literary  men  of  his 
country  had  entered  into  a  cabal  to  deprive  him  of  his 
fame  and  hurl  him  from  the  throne  of  his  literary  au- 
thority. He  was  therefore  ready  to  be  caught  by  the 
most  tempting  bait ;  and  when  Frederic  offered  him  a 
pension  of  twenty -two  thousand  livres,it  was  more  than 
the  miserly  plagiarist  could  resist.  Of  his  reception  by 
the  king  he  thus  speaks  in  his  usual  style  :  "I  set  out 
for  Potsdam  in  June,  1750.  Astolpha  did  not  meet  a 
kinder  reception  in  the  palace  of  Alcuia.  To  be  lodger] 
in  the  same  apartments  that  Marshal  Saxe  had  occu- 
pied, to  have  the  royal  cooks  at  my  command  when  I 
chose  to  dine  alone,  and  the  royal  coachman  when  I 
had  an  inclination  to  ride,  were  trifling  favors.  Our 
suppers  were  very  agreeable.     If  I  am  not  deceived  T 


VOLTAIRE.  121 

^hink  we  had  much  wit.  The  king  was  witty,  and 
gave  occasion  of  wit  to  others ;  and  what  is  still  more 
extraordinary,  I  never  found  myself  so  much  at  my  ease ; 
I  worked  two  hours  a  day  with  his  majesty  ;  corrected 
his  works ;  and  never  failed  highly  to  praise  whatever 
was  worthy  of  praise,  though  I  rejected  the  dross.  I 
gave  him  details  of  all  that  was  necessary  in  rhetoric 
and  criticism  for  his  use :  he  profited  by  my  advice, 
and  his  genius  assisted  him  more  effectually  than  my 
lessons." 

But  matters  did  not  move  on  a  great  while  thus 
harmoniously,  for  Voltaire,  becoming  complicated  in 
personal  difficulties  with  greater  favorites  of  Frederic, 
received  the  frown  of  the  man  he  had  so  much  flat- 
tered, and  whose  purse  had  been  enriching  his  coffers. 
The  skeptic  returned  to  France,  wrote  other  works,  set- 
tled near  the  romantic  shore  of  Lake  Geneva,  and  re- 
turned honored,  great,  and  feasted  to  Paris.  Indulging 
in  unaccustomed  excesses,  his  frail  and  aged  body  sank 
beneath  the  weight.  But  Frederic  and  Voltaire  main- 
tained a  correspondence  many  years  after  the  flatterer's 
disgrace.  Full  of  trouble,  haunted  by  dreams  of  conspir- 
acy and  of  poverty,  successful  in  achieving  more  evil 
than  usually  falls  to  the  lot  of  a  single  mind,  Voltaire 
passed  from  the  society  of  men  to  the  presence  of  God. 
It  has  been  truthfully  said  of  him  in  proof  of  his  incon 
sistency,  that  he  was  a  free  thinker  at  London,  a  Carte- 
sian at  Versailles,  a  Christian  at  Nancy,  and  an  infidel 
at  Berlin. 

Rousseau  sought  to  establish  the  proposition  that 
the  progress  of  scientific  education  has  always  involved 
the  decay  of  moral  education.  With  Lord  Herbert  he 
hvld  that  barbarism  has  ever  been  the  condition  of 
greatest  moral  power.     A  sentiment  from  his    Emile 


122  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

furnishes  the  key  to  his  creed :  "  Everything  is  good 
when  it  comes  forth  from  the  hand  of  the  Creator ; 
everything  degenerates  under  man's  hand.  In  the  state 
in  which  things  now  are,  a  man  who  from  the  moment 
of  his  birth  would  live  among  others,  would,  if  left  to 
himself,  be  most  disfigured.  Prejudices,  authority,  con 
straint,  example,  all  social  institutions  which  now  de- 
press us,  would  choke  nature  in  him,  and  nothing 
would  be  put  in  its  stead.  He  would  resemble  a  young 
tree  which,  growing  up  accidentally  in  the  street,  would 
soon  pine  away  in  consequence  of  the  passers-by  push- 
ing it  from  all  sides,  and  bending  it  in.  all  directions." 
Rousseau  wrote  with  great  earnestness,  and  possessed 
the  faculty  of  inspiring  his  readers  with  an  enthusiastic 
admiration  of  his  theories.  His  romances  misled  many 
thousands,  and  were  the  most  popular  productions  of 
his  times.  Though  he  and  Voltaire  were  the  exponents 
of  French  Deism,  they  were  greatly  aided  in  the  dis- 
semination of  skeptical  doctrines  by  Diderot,  d'Alem- 
bert,  Helvetius,  d' Argent,  de  la  Mettrie,  and  others. 
Bayle,  in  his  Dictionary,  appealed  to  the  learned  circles ; 
and,  not  content  to  give  only  historical  facts,  he  ven- 
tured upon  the  origination  or  reproduction  of  those  new 
skeptical  opinions  which  captivated  unthinking  multi- 
tudes. 

The  Deism  of  France  was  now  a  coadjutor  with  that 
of  England  in  the  devastation  of  Germany.  The  throne 
of  Frederic  II.  was  the  exponent  and  defender  of  the 
hollow  creed.  The  military  successes  of  that  king  gave 
him  an  authority  that  few  monarchs  have  been  able  to 
wield,  while  his  well-known  literary  taste  and  capacity 
enlisted  the  admiration  of  men  of  culture  throughout 
the  Continent.  Born  o  bear  the  sword,  he  surprised 
his  subjects  by  the  same  felicity  in  the  use  of  the  pen ; 


FREDEKIC    TELE    GREAT.  123 

and  the  man  who  conld  leave  to  his  successors  a  treas- 
ury with  a  surplus  of  seventy-two  millions  of  thalers,  an 
army  of  two  hundred  and  twenty  thousand  men,  a 
kingdom  increased  by  twenty-nine  thousand  square 
miles,  and  a  people  grown  since  his  accession  from  two 
millions  to  thrice  that  number,  was  not  a  king  who 
could  be  without  great  moral  weight  among  his  own 
subjects.  And  it  was  known  that  he  was  a  skeptic,  for 
he  made  no  secret  of  it.  No  traces  of  the  old  Pietism 
of  his  harsh  father  were  visible  in  the  son.  Gathering 
around  him  such  men  as  Voltaire,  La  Mettrie,  Mauper- 
tuis,  and  others  whom  his  gold  could  attach  to  him,  he 
was  the  same  king  in  faith  and  literature  that  he  was  iu 
politics.  Claiming  to  be  a  Deist,  it  is  probable  that  he 
was  a  very  liberal  one.  It  is  more  than  likely  that  he 
was  truthful  in  his  description  of  himself  when  he  wrote 
to  d'Alembert  that  he  had  never  lived  under  the  same 
roof  with  religion.  He  claimed  for  his  meanest  sub- 
jects the  right  to  serve  God  in  their  own  way ;  but- 
all  the  power  of  his  example  was  at  work  in  drawing 
the  people  from  the  old  faith.  He  hesitated  not  to 
supplant  evangelical  professors  and  pastors  by  free- 
thinkers, and  at  any  time  to  bring  ridicule  on  any 
religious  fact  or  custom.  That  thin-visaged  man  in  top 
boots  and  cocked  hat,  surrounded  by  his  infidels  and 
his  dogs  at  Sans  Souci,  dictated  faith  to  Berlin  and  to 
Europe.  He  would  have  no  one  within  the  sunshine 
of  royalty  whom  he  could  not  use  as  he  wished ;  and 
just  as  soon  as  Voltaire  would  be  himself  he  became 
disgraced.  But  Frederic  lived  to  see  the  day  when  in- 
subordination sprang  up  in  his  army,  and  in  many  de- 
partments of  public  life.  It  came  from  the  abnegation 
of  evangelical  faith.     And  it  is  no  wonder  that  when 

the  old   king  saw  the  disastrous   effects  of  his   own 
10 


124  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

theories  upon  his  subjects,  he  said  he  would  willing- 
ly give  his  best  battle  to  place  his  people  where  he 
found  them  at  his  father's  death.  But  the  seed  had 
been  sown,  and  Prussia  was  destined  to  be  only  a  part 
of  the  harvest-field  of  tares 


CHAPTER    V. 

8EMLER  AXD  THE  DESTRUCTIVE  SCHOOL. 
1750—1810. 

The  foreign  influences  being  fairly  introduced,  it  now 
remained  to  be  seen  what  course  the  German  church 
would  adopt  respecting  them.  The  process  of  incorpo- 
ration was  rapid.  A  remarkable  activity  of  mind  was 
observable  in  the  theological  world,  and  men  of  great 
learning  and  keen  intellect  began  to  apply  the  deduc- 
tions of  foreign  naturalism  to  the  sacred  oracles.  No 
one  can  claim  that  the  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures 
rested  at  this  time  on  a  pure  and  solid  basis ;  and  it  is 
therefore  not  remarkable  that  those  men  who  had  no 
special  predilection  for  the  doctrine  of  inspiration  should 
silently  submit  to  the  views  of  the  orthodox  believers 
of  their  time.  The  divine  origin  of  Hebrew  points  and 
accents  was  rigidly  contended  for ;  and  Michaelis  only 
fell  in  with  the  accustomed  current  when,  in  his  early 
life,  he  wrote  a  work  in  their  defence.  The  theory  that, 
errors  of  transcription  might  possibly  have  crept  into 
the  text,  was  totally  rejected.  No  such  thing  could,  by 
any  contingency,  occur.  The  fable  of  Aristeas  was  still 
considered  worthy  a  place  in  the  canon.  The  sanctity 
of  the  Hebrew  language,  and  other  Rabbinical  notions,, 
were  defended.     Christ  was  discovered  in  every  book 


126  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

of  the  Old  Testament ;  the  perfect  purity  of  the  Greek 
of  the  New  Testament  was  held  ;  and  fabulous  accounts 
of  early  martyrs  and  miraculous  legends  were  elevated 
to  the  same  standard  of  authority  with  the  gospels. 
What  wonder,  then,  that  when  such  absurdities  were 
entertained  by  the  evangelical  portion  of  the  church  the 
temptation  of  others  to  skepticism  was  so  great  ?  Men 
like  Ernesti  could  not  resist  the  enticement  to  combat 
such  a  state  of  criticism ;  and  he  gave  himself  to  the 
task  with  all  the  ardor  of  his  nature. 

He  was  the  classic  scholar  of  his  day.  The  purity 
of  his  diction  and  the  fertility  of  his  authorship  gained 
him  a  hearing  among  the  educated  and  refined.  His 
word  became  law.  In  his  case,  as  with  many  others  of 
his  countrymen  both  before  and  after  him,  his  theologi- 
cal tastes  gave  him  far  more  authority  than  his  merely 
linguistic  and  literary  attainments  could  have  gained 
for  him.  He  was  distinguished  as  a  preacher  not  less 
than  as  a  scholar.  Enamored  with  the  old  classic  times, 
the  atmosphere  of  Greece  in  her  glory  of  taste  and  cul- 
ture, and  of  Rome  in  her  lustre  of  victory  and  law  made 
him  impatient  of  the  dull  theology  of  his  day.  He 
lived  not  in  Germany,  but  in  the  temples  and  bowers 
of  paganism.  His  Latinity  was  scarcely  inferior  to  the 
fiowinff  utterances  of  his  heathen  masters.  He  edited 
many  classical  works,  and  succeeded  in  regenerating  the 
humanistic  studies  of  Europe.  For  this  all  honor  be 
given  him ;  but  he  did  not  rest  here.  He  examined 
the  New  Testament  with  the  critic's  scalpel,  and  applied 
the  principles  of  ordinary  interpretation  to  the  word  of 
God.  He  held  that  Moses  should  receive  no  better 
treatment  than  Cicero  or  Tacitus.  Logos  was  reason 
and  wisdom  in  the  Greek  writings  ;  why  should  it  mean 
Christ  or  the  Word  when  we  find  it  in  the  gospel  of 


MICHAELIS.  127 

Jolin?  Regeneration  need  not  be  surrounded  with  a 
saintly  halo ;  it  is  absurd  to  suppose  that  it  can  mean 
any  more  than  reception  into  a  religious  society.  The 
Holy  Spirit  does  not  communicate  divine  influences,  but 
certain  praiseworthy  qualities.  Unity  with  the  Father 
is  mere  unity  of  disposition  or  will.  The  Old  Testa- 
ment is  very  good  in  its  way,  but  it  certainly  cannot 
be  intended  for  all  mankind ;  since  many  parts  can  have 
no  salutary  influence  whatever  on  the  heart  and  life. 
It  might  be  of  some  use  to  the  Jews,  but  since  we  are 
so  far  beyond  them  it  is  quite  out  of  place  for  us. 

Both  Grotius  and  Wetstein  had  been  the  fore- 
runners of  Ernesti  in  this  method  of  interpretation. 
What  he  wrought  against  the  New  Testament  had  its 
counterpart  in  the  mischief  effected  by  John  David 
Michaelis  against  the  Old.  This  theologian  was  pro- 
foundly learned  in  the  Oriental  languages,  but  he  was 
a  reckless  and  irreverent  critic.  He  made  light  of  many 
of  the  occurrences  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  whenever 
the  students  applauded  one  of  his  obscene  jokes,  he  was 
tickled  into  childishness.  He  made  no  claim  to  an 
experimental  acquaintance  with  the  operations  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  and  used  his  position  as  theological  profes- 
sor and  lecturer  only  as  the  stepping-stone  to  money 
and  fame.  He  would  make  Moses  a  very  good  sort  of 
statesman,  but  took  care  to  cast  censure  upon  him 
whenever  the  feeblest  occasion  was  offered.  Still  he 
did  not  go  so  far  as  to  cause  great  offense  to  his  Jewish 
readers,  who  were  very  numerous  at  that  time,  for  that 
would  have  endangered  the  pecuniary  profits  from  his 
books.  He  lectured  on  every  subject  that  came  in  his 
way,  and  discussed  from  his  chair  natural  science, 
politics,  agriculture,  and  horse-breeding,  with  as  much 
respect  4nd  reverence  as  the  song  of  Moses  or  the  ut- 


128  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

terances  of  Isaiah.  He  carried  Ernesti's  principles  a 
step  farther  than  that  scholar  had  done.  He  held  that 
it  is  necessary  not  only  to  understand  the  situation  and 
circumstances  of  the  writer  and  people  at  the  time  and 
place  in  which  the  books  were  written,  and  the  language 
and  history  of  the  time,  but  all  things  connected  with 
their  moral  and  physical  character.  The  critic  must 
also  be  conversant  with  everything  relating  to  those  na- 
tions with  whom  the  Jews  associated,  and  know  just 
how  far  the  latter  received  their  opinions  and  customs 
from  abroad. 

There  have  been  few  men  who  have  shown  greater 
boldness  in  assaulting  the  Christian  faith  than  Sem- 
ler,  the  father  of  the  destructive  school  of  Rationalism. 
Reared  in  the  lap  of  the  sternest  Pietism,  he  found 
himself  a  student  at  Halle  pursuing  his  theological  cur- 
riculum. He  was  one  of  the  charmed  disciples  at 
Baumgarten's  feet,  but  it  was  reserved  for  the  pupil  to 
accomplish  far  more  than  the  master  had  ever  antici- 
pated. Gradually  the  old  faith  claimed  him  only  by  a 
slight  hold ;  and  when,  while  yet  a  student,  he  drew 
the  subtle  distinction  between  theology  and  religion, 
he,  in  that  act,  gave  the  parting  hand  to  evangelical 
faith.  Then  step  by  step  he  descended,  until  he  looked 
at  the  oracles  of  God  with  no  more  credence  in  their 
inspiration  and  divine  claims  than  his  master  before 
him.  In  his  turn  he  became  professor ;  and  that  was 
a  dark  day  for  Germany  and  Protestantism  when  he 
read  his  first  lecture  to  his  auditory.  He  studied  the 
Scriptures  while  laboring  under  the  conviction  that 
people  worship  the  Bible  instead  of  the  universal 
Father;  and  he  seemed  to  say  within  himself:  "  I  will 
destroy  this  vain  idolatry,  if  it  take  bread  from  my 
wife  and  children  :  if  life  be  lost  in  the  effort."     So  he 


semler's  destructive  method.  129 

set  himself  to  work  with  a  will.  He  was  in  a  difficulty 
concerning  the  want  of  understanding  as  to  the  number 
of  sacred  books.  He  consulted  the  Jews  of  Palestine, 
and  they  replied  "  twenty-four ; "  he  went  to  the  Alex- 
andrians, and  they  answered  "  a  greater  number  than 
that ;  "  and  to  the  Samaritans,  who  stoutly  held  "  that 
only  the  five  books  of  Moses  have  a  just  claim  to  divine 
authority."  With  such  difference  of  opinion  among 
those  who  ought  to  know  all  about  the  Holy  Scrip- 
tures, Semler,  confounded  and  defiant,  esteemed  him- 
self a  judge  on  his  individual  responsibility.  He  con- 
sequently began  to  examine  the  merits  of  each  part. 
And  first  of  all,  he  must  determine  what  is  the  proof 
of  the  inspiration  of  a  book.  This  he  decided  to  be  the 
inward  conviction  of  our  mind  that  what  it  conveys  to 
us  is  truth.  Certainly,  reason  cannot  be  sunk  so  low 
as  to  discard  its  functions  of  judgment.  And  did  not 
Christ  use  his  natural  faculties  ?  Letting  reason,  there- 
fore, be  umpire,  he  concluded  that  the  books  of  Chron- 
icles, Ruth,  Ezra,  Nehemiah,  Esther,  and  the  Song  of 
Solomon  must  be  rejected ;  that  Joshua,  Judges,  the 
books  of  Samuel,  Kings,  and  Daniel,  are  doubtful  at 
best ;  that  the  Proverbs  of  Solomon  may  be  Ms  or  the 
joint  production  of  a  number  of  tolerably  gifted  men ; 
and  that  the  Pentateuch,  and  especially  Genesis,  is  a 
mere  collection  of  legendary  fragments.  The  New  Tes- 
tament has  some  good  qualities,  which  are  wanting  in 
the  Old ;  but  there  are  parts  of  it  positively  injurious 
to  the  church.  The  Apocalypse  of  John,  for  example, 
can  only  be  held  by  every  calm  critic  as  the  work  of  a 
wild  fanatic.  As  to  the  gospels,  their  authenticity  and 
integrity  are  very  doubtful,  and  that  of  John  is  the 
only  one  in  any  wise  adapted  to  the  present  state  of  the 
world ;  since  he  alone  is  free  from  the  Jewish  spirit. 


130  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

The  general  epistles  were  written  solely  for  the  unifica- 
tion of  the  struggling  parties  into  which  the  early 
church  had  unfortunately  split. 

We  now  come  to  the  famous  Accommodation-Theory. 
Christ  and  his  apostles  taught  doctrines  of  such  nature 
and  by  such  method  as  were  compatible  with  the  pecu- 
liarities of  their  condition.  They  adapted  themselves 
to  the  barbarism  and  coexistent  prejudices  of  the  peo- 
ple ;  and  hence  we  can  only  reconcile  much  that  they 
taught  by  their  disposition  to  cater  to  the  corrupt  taste 
of  their  time.  The  Jews  already  possessed  many  no- 
tions which  it  would  not  be  policy  in  Christ  to  annihi- 
late ;  hence,  said  Sender,  he  reclothed  them,  and  gave 
them  a  slight  admixture  of  truth.  Thus  he  reduced 
Christ's  utterances  concerning  angels,  the  second  coming 
of  the  Messiah,  the  last  Judgment,  demons,  resurrection 
of  the  dead,  and  inspiration  of  the  Scripture,  to  so 
many  accommodations  to  prevailing  errors.  Semler  had 
some  indistinct  faith  in  these  revealed  truths,  but  the 
stress  which  Christ  laid  upon  them  was,  in  his  opinion, 
a  mere  stroke  of  policy.  This  theory  he  had  been  ma- 
turing for  some  time,  and  he  first  made  it  public  in  the 
preface  to  his  Paraphrase  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans. 

Another  distinction  which  Semler  drew  in  connec- 
tion with  his  new  method  of  criticism,  and  somewhat 
allied  to  the  details  of  his  accommodation-theory,  was 
between  the  local  and  temporary,  the  permanent  and 
eternal,  in  the  Scriptures.  A  large  portion  of  the  Bible, 
he  held,  is  only  ephemeral,  and  was  never  intended  to 
be  anything  else.  There  was  a  local  interest'  in  the 
accounts  of  the  writers ;  but  after  the  change  of  govern- 
ment,  or  the  lapse  of  a  generation  or  two,  they  had  uo 
further  application  to  mankind.  Nor  do  they  now  meet 
the   wants  of  the  world ;  they  are    only  the   obsolete 


THE  ACCOMMODATION  THEORY.  131 

machinery  of  a  superseded  civilization.  Sender  bitterly 
complained  of  Ernesti  by  charging  him  with  failing  to 
fix  the  time  and  locality  of  the  circumstances  of  the 
Scriptures.  A  few  specimens  will  show  how  the  latter 
strove  to  meet  the  great  want.  The  coming  of  our  Lord 
Jesus,  1  Cor.  i.  7,  is  only  the  dawn  of  a  temporal  king- 
dom ;  "  Christ  is  a  stumbling-block  to  the  Jews,"  be- 
cause he  would  not  throw  off  the  Roman  yoke  as  his 
countrymen  had  fondly  hoped ;  the  Apostle's  determi- 
nation "  to  know  nothing  but  Jesus  Christ  crucified," 
meant  that  he  knew  nothing  whatever  of  the  second 
coming  of  Christ ;  "  the  Spirit  searching  the  deep  things 
of  God  "  leads  us  to  know  that  we  can  understand  the 
dark  things  of  the  Prophets ;  "  the  creature  which  is 
made  subject  to  vanity  "  is  the  Roman  world  still  pur- 
suing its  idolatry;  the  demoniacs  are  mad  men  whom 
it  was  only  necessary  to  bind  in  order  to  render  per- 
fectly harmless.  With  such  a  system  of  interpretation 
as  this,  no  one  who  adopted  it  could  pretend  to  assign 
for  himself  a  limit  to  his  skepticism.  Whatever  defied 
the  critic's  acumen  or  the  believer's  spiritual  grasp  was 
unraveled  on  the  principle  that  it  was  local  and  tem- 
porary. Surely  Rationalism  was  making  a  bold  stroke 
for  supremacy,  and  it  had  the  rare  fortune  of  possessing 
a  man  of  Semler's  versatile  taste  and  boldness  of  utter- 
ance. 

In  one  aspect  he  came  into  harmony  with  the  Eng- 
lish Deists,  though  his  praise  of  them  was  extremely 
moderate.  He  maintained  that  they  had  done  more 
cood  than  harm ;  but  it  was  only  the  best  of  them 
whom  he  really  admired.  He  silently  repudiated  the 
volatile  French  school,  the  learned  Bayle  being  the  only 
one  of  the  number  whom  he  mentioned  with  any  de- 
gree of  satisfaction.     The  view  by  which  he  came  into 


132  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

nearest  relation  to  the  free-thinkers  of  England  was, 
that  the  Bible  is  but  the  republication  of  the  religion 
of  nature.  He  held  that  the  world  had  been  taught 
religion  long  before  the  Scriptures  were  written  ;  though 
he  confessed  that  in  them  we  find  it  more  clearly  stated 
and  more  rigidly  enjoined  than  anywhere  else.  Among 
the  mass  of  natural  teachings  in  the  Bible  we  occasion- 
ally come  across  a  modicum  of  eternal  truth ;  but  the 
seeker  is  very  seldom  rewarded  with  a  real  gem  of  per- 
manent value.  The  Jews  were  grossly  ignorant  of 
all  important  spiritual  light.  Their  chief  idea  of 
Jehovah  was  that  he  was  their  national  God  ;  and  their 
religion  was  purely  one  of  circumstances  and  ceremonies. 
Moses  had  some  idea  of  the  soul's  immortality,  but  his 
countrymen  were  not  so  highly  favored  as  himself. 
The  Messiah  of  the  Old  Testament  was  a  very  vague 
personage ;  and  indistinct  indeed  must  have  been  the 
Jewish  idea  of  a  coming  Redeemer. 

But  it  was  not  here  that  Semler  won  his  greatest 
victories.  His  chief  triumph  was  against  the  history 
and  doctrinal  authority  of  the  church.  His  mind  had 
been  thoroughly  imbued  with  a  disgust  at  what  was 
ancient  and  revered.  He  appeared  to  despise  the  antiqui- 
ties of  the  church  simply  because  they  were  antiquities. 
What  was  new  and  fresh,  was,  with  him,  worthy  of 
unbounded  admiration  and  speedy  adoption.  His 
prejudice  against  the  Fathers  may  have  been  imbibed 
in  part  from  the  Reformers ;  but,  however  derived,  his 
distaste  and  censure  knew  no  bounds.  All  the  2arly 
Christian  writers,  he  believed,  were  brimful  of  imper- 
fections. Tertullian  was  fanciful,  and  Augustine  cap- 
tious. Sc  persistent  were  his  efforts  against  the  tradi- 
tional authority  of  the  church  that  they  endangered  the 
very  foundations  of  German  Protestantism.     One  would 


SEMLER'S    PRIVATE   LIFE.  133 

have  thought  him  at  times  exhausted  of  strength ;  but 
no  sooner  did  the  thinking  public  recover  from  one 
surprise  than  it  was  startled  by  another  attack.  The 
church  reeled  beneath  his  invasion  of  her  doctrinal  and 
historical  authority.  But  there  was  a  limit  to  her  pa- 
tience. To  call  those  heroic  standard-bearers  of  her 
early  faith  fanatics  and  visionaries  was  quite  too  much 
for  her  to  endure. 

It  now  remained  to  be  seen  whether  Semler's  bold- 
ness would  overleap  itself,  or  prove  the  ruin  of  the  re- 
ligious spirit  of  the  Continent  for  generations.  The 
result,  whatever  it  might  be,  was  soon  to  be  decided. 
For  such  views  as  he  was  propagating  throughout  the 
Protestant  church  of  Germany  could  not  fail  to  determine 
speedily  the  drift  of  the  public  sentiment  of  his  day. 

His  work,  though  destructive,  was  in  conflict  with 
the  pure  beauty  of  his  private  life.  And  here  we  look 
at  him  as  one  of  the  enigmas  of  human  biography. 
True  to  his  tenet  that  a  man's  public  teachings  need  not 
influence  his  personal  living,  he  was  at  once  a  teacher 
of  skepticism  and  an  example  of  piety.  His  Mo- 
ravian origin  and  Pietistic  training  he  could  never  for- 
get ;  nor  do  we  believe  he  attempted  it.  No  doubt  the 
asperity  that  he  witnessed  at  Halle  did  much  to  repel 
him  from  the  harsher  side  of  Pietism.  When  he  heard 
his  room-mate  praying  aloud  three  hours  a  day  upon 
his  knees ;  and  when  he  was  advised  to  lay  aside 
all  extensive  studies,  because  he  would  never  be  con- 
verted while  pursuing  them,  he  began  to  question 
whether  intellectual  progress  were  compatible  with  deep 
piety.  The  conclusion  at  which  he  arrived  was  against 
the  intellectuality  of  the  creed  of  Spener,  but  in  favor 
of  the  spiritual  purity  of  the  life  of  his  disciples. 
Through  Semler's  entire  career  we  can  find  traces  of 


134  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

that  devoted  spirit  which  had  shined  so  brightly  in  his 
early  youth,  and  which,  in  late  life,  he  was  not  ashamed 
to  confess.  "  There  was  no  corner  in  the  whole  house," 
said  he,  "  where  I  did  not  kneel,  and  pray,  and  weep 
alone  that  God  might,  out  of  his  infinite  mercy,  pardon 
my  sins.  I  felt  that  I  was  under  the  bondage  of  the 
law.  Moravian  songs  seemed  to  be  of  very  little  help 
to  me.  I  examined  myself  carefully  to  see  whether  or 
not  I  clung  to  any  sin  either  consciously  or  ignorantly. 
I  reproached  myself  several  times  for  only  giving  one 
penny  to  the  poor-collection  when  I  had  several  pence 
in  my  pocket.  My  father  would  give  me  more  the  next 
time  to  make  up  my  deficiency,  and  this  was  a  great 
delight  to  me.  It  is  now  one  of  the  pleasantest  mem- 
ories of  my  university-life  that  I  used  to  give  pieces  of 
money  to  the  poor." 

His  domestic  life  was  very  beautiful.  He  did  not 
remain  alone  in  his  study,  where  most  literary  men  love 
to  be.  But  wherever  his  children  were  playing,  or  his 
wife  knitting  or  spinning,  he  was  most  happy  to  pursue 
his  studies  and  write  his  books.  He  gives  the  follow- 
ing picture :  "  We  had  the  children  continually  about 
us,  when  they  were  not  under  the  care  of  their  teachers. 
Then  we  would  have  them  read,  or  in  turn  sing  a 
Psalm  or  a  hymn,  or  learn  some  passage  from  a  good 
book.  We  sang  with  them,  and  asked  them  questions 
in  what  they  had  been  studying.  They  knew  Gellert's 
songs  by  rote.  There  was  nothing  but  peace  and  con- 
tentment in  our  circle.  The  servants  never  saw  or 
heard  anything  unpleasant.  Every  little  disturbance 
was  hushed  at  once ;  and  all  the  family  felt  the  po^er 
of  my  wife  in  our  household  arrangements ;  and  our 
reciprocal  love  was  apparent  to  every  one.  I  put  all  the 
money  matters  into  her  hands  ;  she  paid  the  debts  and 


SEMLEE S  PKIVATE    LITE.  135 

received  the  revenue.  Thus  passed  on  twenty  years  of 
beautiful  uniformity  ,  and  parents  and  children  felt  that 
we  were  dearer  to  each  other  than  was  all  the  world 
besides.  We  all  met  faithfully  our  duties  to  each  other. 
But  little  had  then  been  written  on  domestic  training, 
yet  we  created  our  ideas  from  the  pure  fountain  of  re- 
ligion ;  and  though  we  were  deprived  of  much  of  the 
glitter  of  human  life,  we  enjoyed  its  necessities  and  its 
beauty." 

When  such  ties  unite  a  family  we  are  not  surprised 
at  the  spirit  with  which  death  is  met  by  a   carefully 
nurtured  child.    The  account  is  from  Senders  own  pen. 
His  daughter,  then  twenty-one  years  of  age,  was  on  her 
death-bed,   hastening   to    join   her   mother,   who    but 
shortly   before   had   been   borne   from   the   threshold. 
"  About  nine  o'clock,"  wrote   the  bereaved  father,  "  I 
again  pronounced  the  benediction  upon  her.     With  a 
breaking  heart  I  lay  down  to  sleep  a  little.     She  sent 
for  me,  and  addressed  me  thus :  '  Pardon  me,  my  dear 
father,  I  am  so  needy ;  and  do  help  me  to  die  with  that 
faith  and  determination  which  your  Christian  daughter 
should  possess.'     My  heart  took  courage,  and  I  spoke 
to  her  of  the  glories  of  the  heavenly  world  which  would 
soon  break  upon  her.    She  sang  snatches  of  sweet  songs, 
following  which  I  said  but  little.     When  I  addressed 
her,  '  My  dear  daughter,  you  will  soon  rejoin  your  noble 
mother,'  she  answered,  '  Oh,  yes,  and  what  rapture  will 
I  enjoy  !  '     I  fell  down  at  her  bedside,  and  again  com- 
mitted her  soul  to  the  almighty  and  enduring  care  of 
God.     Then  just  before  I  went  to  my  lecture  I  wrent  to 
see  her  again  :  I  asked  her  if  she  still  remembered  the 
hymn,  '  Thou  art  mine,  because  I  hold  thee  ; '  when  she 
said,  '  Oh  yes,'  and  repeated   the  verse,  '  O    Lord   my 
refuge,  Fountain  of  my  Joys.'     '  Yes,  eternal,'  I  added 


136  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

I  left  her,  thinkitg  that  she  might  last  considerably 
longer.  But  I  was  suddenly  called  from  my  lecture, 
when  I  again  committed  her  grand  spirit  to  God  who 
gave  it,  and  closed  her  eyes  myself.  My  bitter  grief 
now  subsided  into  calm  affliction,  and  a  sweet  acquies 
cence  with  the  wise  will  of  God.  Now  I  know  what 
the  real  joy  is  of  having  seen  a  child  die  so  calmly,  and 
of  feeling  that  I  had  some  share  in  the  training  that 
could  end  so  triumphantly.  And  I  still  publicly  thank 
those  of  her  teachers  who  have  contributed  to  the  form- 
ation of  her  character.  Therefore,  when  some  would 
in  our  days  advocate  an  unchristian  education,  I  can 
speak  with  the  light  of  experience,  when  I  earnestly 
recommend  to  all  pious  and  provident  parents  to  give 
their  children  a  good  Christian  training.  Thus  Chris- 
tian-like and  beautifully  have  Christian-trained  people 
been  dying  these  many  centuries." 

It  is  astonishing  that  a  man  could  live  as  purely 
and  devotedly  as  Semler,  and  yet  make  the  gulf 
so  wide  between  private  faith  and  public  instruc- 
tion. We  attribute  no  evil  intention  to  him  in  his 
theological  labors ;  these  were  the  result  of  his  own 
mental  defects.  He  was  a  careless  writer,  and  not  a 
close  thinker.  He  read  history  loosely,  and  the  philos- 
ophy of  the  Christian  system  was  unperceived  and  un- 
appreciated by  him.  He  looked  at  single  defects,  and 
magnified  them  to  such  an  extent  that  they  obscured 
whole  mines  of  truth  and  virtue.  Having  conceived  a 
vague  idea  of  his  theme,  he  wrote  hurriedly  upon  it. 
He  was  impelled  by  his  previous  notions  and  the  ex- 
citement of  the  hour.  He  had  a  very  retentive  memory, 
but  it  was  no  aid  to  correct  reasoning.  When  he  saw 
one  evil  of  the  Fathers,  a  mistake  of  the  chuich,  or  a 
defect  in  her  doctrine,  he  generalized  it  until  he  believed 


ADHERENTS    TO    SEMLER's    OPINIONS.  137 

error  to  be  the  rule  instead  of  the  exception.  It  has 
been  said  that,  toward  the  close  of  his  life,  he  regretted 
his  theological  instructions ;  but  in  a  conversation  two 
days  before  his  death  he  betrayed  the  same  skeptical 
views  that  had  distinguished  his  life.  His  method  of 
skeptical -historical  criticism  was  the  poison  which,  hav- 
ing been  once  introduced  into  the  literature  and  pulpits 
of  the  church,  produced  wide-spread  and  long-seated 
disease. 

Semler  was  not  the  founder  of  a  school,  for  he  ad- 
vanced no  elaborate  system  and  possessed  no  organizing 
power.  Great  as  were  the  results  of  his  labors,  no  one 
was  more  surprised  at  them  than  himself.  Two  or 
three  immediate  disciples,  who  had  heard  him  lecture, 
were  enamored  of  his  theories,  but  as  they  were  men 
of  moderate  capacity  their  activity  produced  no  perma- 
nent effect  upon  the  public  mind.  It  was  in  another 
respect  that  he  was  mighty.  Some  of  his  contem- 
poraries who  taught  in  other  universities  seized  upon 
his  tenets  and  began  to  propagate  them  vigorously. 
They  made  great  capital  out  of  them  for  themselves. 
Semler  invaded  and  overthrew  what  was  left  of  the 
popular  faith  in  inspiration  after  the  labors  of  Wolf, 
but  here  he  stopped.  His  adherents  and  imitators  com- 
menced with  his  abnegation  of  inspiration,  and  made  it 
the  preparatory  step  for  their  attempted  annihilation 
of  revelation  itself.  Soon  the  theological  press  teemed 
with  blasphemous  publications  against  the  Scriptures ; 
and  men  of  all  the  schools  of  learning  gave  themselves 
to  the  work  of  instruction.  Gottingen,  Jena,  Helm- 
stedt,  and  Frankfort-on-the-Oder  were  no  longer  schools 
of  prophets,  but  of  Rationalists  and  Illuminists. 

Griesbach  pursued  his  skeptical  investigations  for 
the  establishment  of  natural  religion  and  others  aided 


138  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

him  in  his  undertaking.  But  the  men  of  this  class 
were  not  the  principal  agents  of  the  complete  ruin 
of  the  religious  vitality  of  the  people.  We  turn  to 
Edelmann  and  Bahrdt,  two  of  the  most  decided  ene- 
mies of  Christianity  who  have  appeared  in  these  latei 
centuries. 

The  former  was  the  better  man,  but  his  career 
brought  discredit  on  private  virtue  and  public  morality. 
In  the  early  part  of  his  life  he  was  blameless,  but  he 
subsequently  betrayed  all  the  personal  weakness  which 
his  skepticism  tended  to  engender.  We  get  a  fair  por- 
trait  of  him  from  the  pen  of  one  of  his  countrymen, 
Kahnis :  "  What  Edelmann  wished  was  nothing  new," 
writes  this  author ;  "  after  the  manner  of  all  adherents 
of  Illuminism,  he  wished  to  reduce  all  positive  religions 
to  natural  religion.  The  positive  heathenish  religions 
stand,  to  him,  on  a  level  with  Judaism  and  Christianity. 
He  is  more  just  toward  heathenism  than  toward  Juda- 
ism, and  more  just  toward  Judaism  than  toward  Chris- 
tianity. Everything  positive  in  religion  is,  as  such, 
superstition.  Christ  was  a  mere  man,  whose  chief  merit 
consists  in  the  struggle  against  superstition.  What  he 
taught,  and  what  he  was  anxious  for,  no  one,  however, 
may  attempt  to  learn  from  the  New  Testament  writings, 
inasmuch  as  these  were  forged  as  late  as  the  time  of 
Constantine.  All  which  the  church  teaches  of  his 
divinity,  of  his  merits,  of  the  gracious  influence  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  is  absurd.  There  is  no  rule  of  truth  but 
reason,  and  it  manifests  its  truths  directly  by  a  peculiar 
sense.  Whatever  this  sense  says  is  true.  It  is  this 
sense  which  perceives  the  world.  The  reality  of  every- 
thing which  exists  is  God.  In  the  proper  sense  there 
can,  therefore,  not  exist  any  atheist,  because  every  one 
who  admits  the  reality  of  the  world  admits  also  the 


BAHRDT.  139 

reality  of  God.  God  is  not  a  person— least  of  all  are 
there  three  persons  in  God.  If  God  be  the  substance 
in  all  the  phenomena,  then  it  follows  of  itself  that  God 
cannot  be  thought  of  without  the  world,  and  hence  that 
the  world  has  no  more  had  an  origin  than  it  will  have 
aj;  end.  One  may  call  the  world  the  body  of  God,  the 
shadow  of  God,  the  son  of  God.  The  spirit  of  God  is 
in  all  that  exists.  It  is  ridiculous  to  ascribe  inspiration 
to  special  persons  only ;  every  one  ought  to  be  a  Christ, 
a  prophet,  an  inspired  man.  The  human  spirit,  being 
a  breath  of  God,  does  not  perish ;  our  spirit,  separated 
from  its  body  by  death,  enters  into  a  connection  with 
some  other  body.  Thus  Edelmann  taught  a  kind  of 
metempsychosis.  What  he  taught  had  been  thoroughly 
and  ingeniously  said  in  France  and  England ;  but  from 
a  German  theologian,  and  that  with  such  eloquent 
coarseness,  with  such  a  mastery  in  expatiating  in  blas- 
phemy, such  things  were  unheard  of.  But  as  yet  the 
faith  of  the  church  was  a  power  in  Germany  !  " 

From  Edelmann  the  transition  is  easy  to  the  reckless 
and  vicious  Bahrdt.  This  man  stands  among  the  first  of 
those  who  have  brought  dishonor  upon  the  sacred  voca- 
tion. What  Jeffreys  is  to  the  judicial  history  of  England, 
Bahrdt  is  to  the  religious  history  of  German  Protestant- 
ism. Whatever  he  touched  was  disgraced  by  the  vile- 
ness  of  his  heart  and  the  satanic  daring  of  his  mind. 
He  heard  theological  lectures.  Thinking  that  in  this  field 
he  could  infuse  most  venom  and  reap  a  greater  harvest 
of  gold  than  in  any  other,  he  stripped  for  the  under- 
taking. While  a  mere  youth  he  gained,  by  his  tricky 
management, a  professor's  chair.  He  blasphemed  to  his 
auditors  by  day,  while  at  night  he  surrendered  himself 
to  the  corruptions  of  the  gambling-room,  the  beer-cellar 

and  the  house  of  prostitution.     The  slave  of  passion  and 

11 


140  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

of  doubt, he  was,  of  all  his  contemporaries,  the  most  loud 
spoken  against  the  claims  of  God's  truth,  and  adherence 
to  the  canons  of  the  church.  His  mind  was  quick,  ac- 
tive, and  penetrating.  Seizing  the  pen,  he  invaded  the 
sanctity  of  every  doctrine  that  stood  in  the  way  of  his 
corrupt  theories.  He  took  up  the  Bible  with  sacrile- 
gious purpose,  and  made  it  the  plaything  of  his  vicious 
heart.  He  sneered  at  what  was  revered  by  the  church 
and  the  good  men  of  past  ages,  with  the  kind  of  levity 
that  should  greet  the  recital  of  the  stories  of  Sinbad 
the  Sailor  and  the  Wonderful  Lamp. 

He  published  many  works,  the  aim  of*all  being  to 
infuse  into  the  masses  a  contempt  of  the  received  Scrip- 
tures. He  issued  a  travesty  of  the  New  Testament  un- 
der the  title  of  The  New  Testament,  or  The  Newest  In- 
structions from  God  through  Jesus  and  his  Apostles. 
He  did  just  what  he  pleased  with  the  miracles  and  words 
of  Christ.  He  would  convert  dialogue  into  parable, 
and  make  any  passage,  however  grave  in  import,  min- 
ister to  his  unsanctified  purpose.  He  banished  such  ex- 
pressions as  'kingdom  of  God," holiness,'  'sanctification,' 
4  Saviour,'  '  Redeemer,' '  way  of  salvation,'  '  Holy  Ghost,' 
1  name  of  Jesus,'  and  all  other  terms  that  could  leave 
the  impression  of  inspiration  and  divine  presence. 

But  corrupt  as  the  church  was,  it  was  not  ready  for 
this  fearful  leap ;  therefore  Bahrdt  received  a  torrent  of 
abuse.  Banished  and  hunted  by  opposition,  he  gained 
many  adherents  from  the  force  of  the  very  arrows  dis- 
charged against  him.  He  had  fallen  from  the  height  of 
faith  which  he  occupied  when  he  went  to  Giessen,  a  fact 
which  he  refers  to  in  his  autobiography  :  "  I  came  to 
Giessen,"  says  he,  "  as  yet  very  orthodox.  My  belief  in 
the  divinity  of  the  Scriptures,  in  the  direct  mission  of 
Jesus,  in  his  miraculous  history,  in  the  Trinity,  in  the 


BAHKDT.  141 

gifts  of  grace,  in  natural  corruption,  in  justification  of 
the  sinner  by  laying  hold  of  the  merits  of  Christ,  and 
especially  in  the  whole  theory  of  satisfaction,  seemed 
to  be  immovable.  It  was  only  the  manner  in  which 
three  persons  were  to  be  in  one  God,  which  had  engaged 
my  reason.  I  had  only  explained  to  myself  a  little  bet- 
ter the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  so  as  not  to  exclude 
man's  activity.  I  had  limited  a  little  the  idea  of  origi- 
nal sin ;  and  in  the  doctrine  of  the  atonement  and  justi- 
fication, I  had  endeavored  to  uphold  the  value  of  vir- 
tue, and  had  cleared  myself  from  the  error  that  God,  in 
his  grace,  should  not  pay  any  regard  at  all  to  human 
virtuous  zeal.  That  in  the  doctrine  of  the  Lord's  Sup- 
per I  was  more  Reformed  than  Lutheran,  will  be  sup- 
posed as  a  matter  of  course." 

But  in  due  time  he  dropped  these  points  of  belief, 
one  by  one,  until  he  indulged  in  all  the  illicit  extrava- 
gances of  the  radical  skeptics  of  France.  The  opposi- 
tion he  met  with  was  a  sore  rebuke,  but  it  failed  to  cure 
him.  He  set  out  for  a  journey  to  England  and  Holland 
with  but  three  florins  in  his  purse,  and  he  suffered  much 
by  the  way.  He  came  home  again  only  to  find  new 
edicts  against  him.  On  arriving  at  Halle,  where  he  had 
once  been  honored,  he  was  met  with  the  following  re- 
pulse from  the  faculty,  at  whose  head  stood  Semler,  the 
father  of  his  doubt :  "  Our  vocation  demands  not  only 
that  we  should  prevent  the  dissemination  of  directly  ir- 
religious opinions,  but  also  that  we  should  watch  over 
the  doctrines  which  are  contained  in  Holy  Scripture, 
and,  in  conformity  with  it,  in  the  Augsburg  Confession 
of  Faith? 

He  labored  as  an  educator,  preacher,  professor,  and 
author.  He  made  all  his  enterprises  subservient  to  the 
dearest   object   of    his  life, — money.     He  wrote   plain 


142  HISTORY    OF   RATION  AXISM. 

books  for  the  masses,  and  his  writings  were  perused  alike 
in  palace  and  cottage.  While  a  resident  in  Halle  he 
established  an  inn  in  the  suburbs  of  the  city  where  his 
depraved  nature  was  permitted  to  indulge  in  those 
nameless  liberties  unbecoming,  not  only  the  theologian, 
but  the  rational  man.  His  liaison  with  the  servant-girl 
in  his  employ  made  his  wife  an  object  of  public  pity  , 
and  we  can  easily  understand  his  injustice  to  the  latter 
when  he  tells  us  himself  that  he  had  never  loved  with 
passion.  His  death  was  of  a  piece  with  his  life.  Hav- 
ing been  a  public  frequenter  of  brothels  and  the  asso- 
ciate of  the  loosest  company,  he  died  like  the  libertine. 
He  was  taken  off  by  syphilis. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  enlarge  upon  the  lesson  of 
Bahrdt's  life.  He  was  the  German  crystallization  of 
all  the  worst  elements  of  French  skepticism.  He  be- 
gan his  work  with  an  evil  purpose,  and  never  sought  the 
wisdom  of  God  who  promises  to  give  liberally  to  all 
who  ask  him.  The  infamy  of  his  life  was  soon  for- 
gotten, and  only  his  teachings  remained  to  corrupt  the 
young  and  injure  the  mature  of  the  land.  While  his 
love  of  money  controlled  his  matrimonial  alliances  and 
literary  labors,  his  hatred  of  revealed  religion  dis- 
torted his  whole  moral  and  intellectual  nature.  He  is 
illustrative  of  the  certain  doom  which  awaits  the  man 
who  commits  himself  to  the  sole  guidance  of  his  doubts. 
Sender's  moral  life  was  in  spite  of  erroneous  opinions ; 
Bahrdt's  was  in  conformity  with  them.  And  what  the 
latter  was  in  his  career  and  death  is  the  best  comment 
that  can  be  written  on  the  natural  effect  of  Rationalism. 
Would  that  he  had  been  the  only  warning ;  but  he  had 
his  followers  when  his  creed  became  the  fashion  of  the 
German  church.  The  depth  of  his  infamy  is  only  ag- 
gravated by  the  holy  sphere  in  which  he  wrought  fear 


BAHEDT. 


143 


fol  havoc    upon   the   succeeding  generation.     The  Old 
Play  says  truly : 

"  That  sin  does  ten  times  aggravate  itself 

That  is  committed  in  an  holy  place ; 

An  evil  deed  done  by  authority 

Is  sin  and  subornation ;   deck  an  ape 

In  tissue,  and  the  beauty  of  the  robe 

Adds  but  the  greater  scorn  unto  the  beast; 

The  poison  shows  worst  in  a  golden  cup  ; 

Dark  night  seems  darker  by  the  lightning's  flash; 

Lilies  that  fester  smell  far  worse  than  weeds ; 

And  every  glory  that  inclines  to  sin, 

The  shame  is  trebled  by  the  opposite." 


CHAPTER    VI. 

OONTRIBOTIONS  OF  LITERATURE  AND  PHILOSOPHY. 

The  views  of  Semier,  possessing  great  power  of 
fascination,  soon  gained  popular  strength.  As  a  result, 
the  strictly  literary  tastes  of  the  people  took  a  theo- 
logical turn  and  the  Bible  became  the  theme  of  every 
aspirant  to  authorship.  As  no  system  had  yet  been  ad- 
vanced by  the  Rationalists,  there  was  wide  range  foi 
doctrinal  and  exegetical  discussion.  The  devoted  Pie 
tists,  who  were  now  in  the  background,  looked  on  in 
amazement  as  they  trembled  for  the  pillars  of  faith. 
They  knew  not  what  to  do.  Many  of  their  number 
had  proved  themselves  fanatics  and  brought  odium 
upon  the  revered  names  of  Spener  and  Francke.  Their 
enemies  were  traveling  in  foreign  lands,  ransacking  the 
libraries  of  other  tongues  to  bring  home  the  poisonous 
seeds  of  doubt.  At  home,  the  University  was  the 
training  school  of  ungoverned  criticism.  History, 
science,  literature,  and  philology  were  only  prized  ac- 
cording to  the  measure  of  strength  they  possessed  to 
combat  the  great  claims  of  the  orthodox  church.  Be- 
sides, the  Rationalists  seemed  to  be  impartial  inquirers. 
They  set  themselves  to  understand  the  Scriptural 
lands  and  languages,  while  their  progress  in  recent 
Biblical  literature  gained  for  them  the  respect  of  many 


MENTAL    ACTIVITY.  145 

who,  though  less  learned,  were  more  evangelical.  The 
masses  have  always  paid  homage  to  learning,  and  in 
this  case,  it  was  the  attainments  of  the  Illuminists  which 
gave  them  a  standing  denied  to  the  friends  of  the  Bible. 
The  times  were  all  astir  with  the  evidences  of  mental 
progression.  There  was  now  a  resurrection  of  Eu- 
ropean activity.  Look  whither  you  will,  there  was  no- 
where either  the  spirit  of  sleep  or  of  sloth.  The 
science  of  government,  the  beauties  of  aesthetic  cul- 
ture, the  discoveries  of  the  material  world,  and  the 
long-sealed  mysteries  of  philology,  were  each  the  centre 
of  a  host  of  admirers  and  votaries.  As  in  the  four- 
teenth and  fifteenth  centuries  Europe  arose  from  the 
torpidity  of  the  Middle  Ages,  so  did  the  eighteenth 
century  witness  a  new  revival  from  the  darkness  and 
sluggishness  of  Continental  Protestantism.  There  ap- 
peared to  be  a  universal  repudiation  of  old  methods, 
and  a  new  civilization  was  now  the  aim  of  every  class  of 
literary  adventurers.  Semler  had  struck  the  key-note  of 
human  pride.  He  had  so  flattered  his  race  by  saying 
that  the  Bible  was  not  so  sacred  as  to  be  exempt  from 
criticism,  that  his  contemporaries  would  not  willingly 
let  his  words  fall  to  the  ground.  The  temptation  was 
too  strong  to  be  resisted,  and  soon  the  Scriptures  became 
a  carcass  around  which  the  vultures  of  Germany  gather- 
ed to  satisfy  the  cravings  of  their  wanton  hunger.  We 
do  not  say  that  the  destructionists  desired  to  injure  the 
faith  of  the  people,  or  to  cast  odium  upon  the  pages 
that  Luther  and  Melanchthon  had  unfolded  to  the  Ger- 
man heart.  But  believing  as  they  did  that  the  popular 
respect  for  the  Bible  was  sheer  Bibliolatry,  and  that 
therefore  the  dignity  of  reason  was  compromised,  they 
bestirred  themselves  to  show  every  weak  point  in  the 
faith  of  the  church.     They  hastened  to  expose  the  do- 


146  HISTOEY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

fects  of  the  Scriptures  with  as  much  frankness  as  they 
would  brand  a  sentence  in  Cicero  or  Seneca  to  be  the 
interpolation  of  an  impostor. 

In  no  nation  has  theology,  as  a  science,  absorbed 
more  literary  talent  and  labor  than  in  Germany.  Ic 
America  and  Great  Britain  the  theologian  is  the 
patron  of  his  own  department  of  thought.  But  in 
Germany,  poets,  romancists,  and  scientific  men  write 
almost  as  many  works  connected  with  religious  ques- 
tions as  on  topics  within  their  own  chosen  vocation. 
The  Teuton  considers  himself  a  born  theologian.  So 
it  was  after  the  announcement  of  the  destructive  theo- 
ries of  Semler.  All  classes  of  thinkers  invited  them- 
selves to  discuss  the  Scriptures  and  their  claims  with  as 
much  freedom  as  if  God  had  told  them  it  was  the  true 
aim  of  their  life. 

What  was  the  consequence  ?  Semler,  having  left  so 
much  room  for  doubt,  and  having  rather  indicated  a  di- 
rection than  supplied  a  plan,  a  great  number  of  men 
adopted  the  accommodation- theory  and  each  one  built 
his  own  edifice  upon  it.  But  the  conclusions  arrived  at 
by  them  were  very  unlike,  and  generally  incongru- 
ous. And  such  a  result  was  very  natural ;  for,  all 
claiming  the  unrestricted  use  of  reason,  the  issue  of 
their  thinking  was  the  work  of  the  individual  mind. 
No  two  intellects  are  perfectly  similar.  Set  a  number 
of  men  to  write  upon  a  given  subject  and  they  will  em- 
ploy a  different  style,  give  expression  to  diverse 
thoughts,  and  perhaps  reach  antipodal  conclusions.  So 
when  these  writers  against  inspiration  plied  the  peu, 
and  burdened  the  press  with  their  prolix  effusions,  there 
was  no  harmony  in  their  thoughts.  In  one  opinion  they 
were  firmly  united,  that  the  Bible  is  a  human  book. 
But  how  much  of  it  was   authentic ;  what  was  history 


UNIVERSAL    GERMAN     LIBRARY.  147 

and  what  myth  ;  what  poetry  and  what  incident ;  these 
and  a  thousand  kindred  points  divided  the  Rationalists 
into  almost  as  many  classes  as  there  were  individuals. 

There  were  two  principal  tendencies  which  gave 
a  permanence  and  efficiency  to  Rationalism  quite  be- 
yond the  expectation  of  its  most  sanguine  friends  and 
admirers.  One  was  literary,  and  inaugurated  by  Less- 
ing ;  the  other  purely  philosophical,  and  conducted  by 
Kant. 

The  literary  despotism  at  Berlin  was  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  in  the  annals  of  periodical  literature. 
We  refer  to  the  Universal  German  Library,  under  the 
control  of  Nicolai.  Its  avowed  aim  was  to  laud  every 
Rationalistic  book  to  the  skies,  but  to  reproach  every 
evangelical  publication  as  unworthy  the  support,  or 
even  the  notice,  of  rational  beings.  Its  appliances  for 
gaining  knowledge  were  extensive,  and  it  commanded  a 
survey  of  the  literature  of  England,  Holland,  France, 
and  Italy.  Whatever  appeared  in  these  lands  received 
its  immediate  attention,  and  was  reproached  or  magni- 
fied according  to  its  relations  to  the  skeptical  creed  of 
Nicolai  and  his  co-laborers.  Commencing  in  1765,  it  ran 
a  career  of  power  and  prosperity  such  as  but  few  serials 
have  ever  enjoyed.  It  terminated  its  existence  in  1792, 
having  inflicted  incalculable  evil  upon  the  popular  esti- 
mate of  the  vital  doctrines  of  Christianity.  Being  the 
great  organ  of  the  Rationalists,  it  sat  in  judgment  upon 
the  sublime  truths  of  our  holy  faith.  With  all  the 
rage  of  an  infuriated  lion  it  pounced  upon  every  literary 
production  or  practical  movement  that  had  a  tendency 
to  restore  the  old  landmarks.  Its  influence  was  felt 
throughout  Germany  and  the  Continent.  Every  uni- 
versity and  gymnasium  listened  to  it  as  an  oracle,  while 
its  power  was  felt  even  in  the  pot-houses  and  humblest 


148  HISTORY    OF    RATIONA1ISJU. 

cottages.  Berlin  was  completely  under  its  sway,  and 
Berliner  was  a  synonym  of  nationalist  Oetinger 
wrote  a  curious  passage  in  a  volume  of  sermons,  pub- 
lished in  1777,  in  which  he  descants  On  those  things  of 
which  the  people  of  Berlin  know  nothing:  "They  knu^ 
nothing  of  the  Lord  of  glory ;  they  are  sick  of  these 
shallow-pated  Liebnitzians ;  they  wish  to  kno  w  nothing 
of  the  promises  of  God ;  they  have  nothing  to  do  with 
the  salutations  of  the  seven  spirits ;  they  form  a  me- 
chanical divinity  after  their  own  notion.  The  Berliners 
know  nothing  of  man  so  far  as  he  is  a  subject  of  divine 
grace  ;  nothing  of  angels  or  devils,  nothing  of  what  sin 
is,  nothing  of  eating  and  drinking  the  flesh  and  blood 
of  Christ,  and  still  less  of  the  communion  of  saints,  and 
that  the  spirit  can  be  communicated  by  the  laying  on 
of  hands.  They  know  nothing  of  the  truth  that  bap- 
tism and  the  Lord's  Supper  are  agents  for  a  spiritual 
union  with  Christ ;  they  know  nothing  of  heaven  and 
hell ;  nothing  of  the  interval  before  the  resurrection. 
Neither  do  they  wish  to  know  anything  save  what  may 
harmonize  with  their  own  depraved  views.  But  the 
time  will  come  when  Jesus  will  show  them  how  they 
should  have  confessed  him  before  the  world."  This 
was  Berlin,  and  Berlin  was  Germany, 

The  position  of  Rationalism  during  the  last  quarter 
of  the  eighteenth  century  was  surrounded  with  circum- 
stances of  the  most  conflicting  nature.  Had  it  been  ad- 
vocated by  a  few  more  such  ribald  characters  as  Bahrdt 
its  career  would  soon  have  been  terminated  from 
the  mere  want  of  respectability.  But  had  it  assumed  a 
more  serious  phase  and  become  the  protege  of  such 
pious  men  as  Semler  was  at  heart,  there  would  have 
been  no  limit  to  the  damage  it  might  inflict  upon  the 
cause  of  Protestantism.     And   there    were   indications 


THE    WOLFENBUTTEL   FRAGMENTS.  149 

favorable  to  either  result.  However,  by  some  plan  of 
fiendish  malice,  skepticism  received  all  the  support  it 
could  ask  from  the  learned,  the  powerful,  and  the  am- 
bitious. Here  and  there  around  the  horizon  could  be 
seen  some  rising  literary  star  that,  for  the  hour,  excited 
universal  attention.  His  labor  was  to  impugn  the  con- 
tents of  the  Scriptures  and  insinuate  against  the  moral 
purity  of  the  writers  themselves.  Another  candidate 
for  theological  glory  appeared,  and  reproached  the  style 
of  the  inspired  record.  A  third  came  vauntingly  for- 
ward with  his  geographical  discoveries  and  scientific 
data,  and  reared  the  accommodation-theory  so  many 
more  stories  higher  than  Semler  had  left  it  that  it  al- 
most threatened  to  fall  of  its  own  weight.  Strange 
that  the  poetic  Muse  should  lend  her  inspiration  to  such 
unholy  purposes ;  but  in  the  poetry  of  that  day  there 
was  but  little  of  the  Christian  element,  and  he  need  not 
be  greatly  skilled  in  classic  verse  who  concludes  that 
the  loftiest  poetry  of  Rationalism  was  as  thoroughly 
heathen  as  the  dramas  of  Euripides  or  Plautus. 

Immediately  before  the  appearance  of  the  Wolfen- 
battel  Fragments  by  Lessing,  there  was  the  significant 
lull  before  the  storm.  A  single  editorial  in  some  re- 
ligious periodical  might  decide  the  fate  of  Rationalism. 
In  a  few  years  more  it  might  lie  outside  the  lecture-halls 
and  renowned  churches  as  thoroughly  discarded  as  a 
cast-off  garment.  Or  it  might  rise  to  new  power  and 
bend  all  opposition  before  it.  Every  one  seemed  to  be 
waiting  to  see  what  would  come  next.  Would  it  be  the 
hoarse  thunder  and  the  glare  of  lightning;  or  would 
the  clouds  be  rent  and  the  clear  sky  be  seen  through 
the  widening  rifts  ? 

Lessing  touched  a  chord  which  vibrated  throughout 
the  land.     While  in  charge  of  the  celebrated  Libraiy  at 


150  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Wolfenbiittel  lie  met  with  a  manuscript  production  of 
Rehnarus,  bearing  the  title  of  Vindication  of  tlw  Ra- 
tional Worshipers  of  God.     It   can   still  be  found   in 
the  Town  Library  of  Hamburg.     Between  1774  and 
1778,  Lessing  issued  seven  Fragments  from  this  work; 
and  the  result  was,  that  Germany  was  electrified  by  the 
boldness  and  importance  of  the  views  there  advanced. 
They  cannot  be  considered  the  private  opinions  of  Less- 
ing, for  in  many  places  he  appends  notes  stating  his 
opposition  to  them.     But  he  heartily  approved  the  sub- 
stance of  the  work,  though  his  object  in  the  publication 
of  the  Fragments  was  more  to  feel  the  public   pulse 
than  to  instill  theological  doctrines  into  the  minds  of  the 
people.    Reimarus  had  been  a  doubter  like  many  others 
of  his  countrymen.     He  committed  his  mental  phases  to 
paper,  though  he  thought  that  it  was  not  yet  time  to 
issue    them   for  public  notice.      The  Fragments  pub- 
lished by  Lessing  contain  the  gist  of  his  entire  work, 
and  contributed  far  more  to  the  growth  of  skepticism 
than  a  larger  production  would  probably  have  done. 
The  historical  evidences  of  Christianity  and  of  the  doc- 
trine of  inspiration,  according  to  the  Fragments,  are  clad 
in  such  a  garb  of  superstition  that  they  do  not  merit 
the  credence  of  sensible  men.     The  confessions  framed 
at  different  periods  of  the  history  of  the  church  have 
savored  far  more  of  human   weakness  than  of  divine 
knowledge.     They  bear   but   slight  traces  of  Biblical 
truth.     The  Trinity  is  incomprehensible,  and  the  heart 
should  not  feel  bound  to  lean  upon  what  Reason  can- 
not fathom.     Nearly  all  the  Old  Testament  history  is 
a  string  of  legends  and  myths  which  an  advanced  age 
should  indignantly  reject.     Christ  never  really  intended 
to  establish  a   permanent  religion ;    the   work  of  his 
apostles  was  something  unanticipated  by  himself.     His 


THE    WOLFENBUTTEL    FRAGMENTS.  151 

design  was  to  restore  Judaism  to  its  former  state, 
throw  off  the  Roman  yoke,  and  declare  himself  king. 
His  public  entry  into  Jerusalem  was  designed  to  be 
his  installation  as  a  temporal  king ;  but  he  failed  in  his 
dependence  upon  popular  support,  and,  instead  of  at- 
taining a  throne,  he  died  on  the  cross.  Belief  in  Scrip- 
tural records  is  perfectly  natural  to  the  Christian,  for  he 
has  imbibed  it  from  education  and  training.  Reason  is 
forestalled  in  the  ordinary  education  of  children ;  they 
are  baptized  before  they  are  old  enough  to  exercise 
their  own  reasoning  faculties.  Faith  in  Scripture  testi- 
mony is  really  of  no  greater  value  than  the  belief  of  the 
Mohammedan  or  Jew  in  their  oracles,  unless  Reason  be 
permitted  to  occupy  the  seat  of  judgment. 

We  have  said  that  the  excitement  raised  by  the 
publication  of  the  Fragments  was  intense.  There  was 
in  them  more  calmness  of  expression,  and  more  apparent 
effort  for  truthful  conclusions  than  many  of  the  pre- 
viously published  works  of  the  Rationalists  had  indi- 
cated. By  and  by,  there  sprang  up  a  decided  opposi- 
tion to  the  work  of  Lessing ;  and  from  all  quarters  of 
the  German  church  there  came  earnest  and  vigorous 
replies.  It  was  surprising  that  there  remained  so  much 
tenacity  for  the  old  faith.  Lessing  received  the  censure 
of  many  of  the  best  and  wisest  men  of  his  time ;  his 
publication  of  the  Fragments  was  claimed  to  be  a  curse 
to  the  cause  of  truth.  But  he  had  accomplished  what 
he  wished,  while  his  success  was  far  beyond  his  expec- 
tation. He  found  that  a  large  portion  of  his  country- 
men were  not  willing  to  cast  loose  from  the  old  moor- 
ings of  the  Protestant  teachings,  and  that,  whatever 
the  previous  indications  were,  there  was  yet  a  deep 
undercurrent  of  attachment  to  the  time-honored  confes- 
sions of  the  church. 


152  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

The  movement  employed  by  Lessing  to  find  out 
what  the  people  really  believed  is  one  of  the  shrewdest 
literary  tricks  on  record.  Without  committing  himself 
to  what  he  issued,  and  watching  carefully  the  effect  of 
the  Fragments,  he  began  to  publish  his  own  views  with 
no  little  assurance  that  he  would  prove  successful.  He 
learned  that  the  Wolfian  philosophy  was  becoming 
effete,  and  so  he  raised  the  cry,  loud  and  clear,  against 
its  longer  existence.  He  violently  opposed  the  obliter- 
ation of  all  dependence  upon  the  historical  proofs  of 
Christianity,  and  claimed  that,  in  the  matter  of  religion, 
the  heart  has  a  work  not  less  than  the  reason.  His 
principle  was:  overthrow  this  historical  basis,  and  you 
endanger  the  whole  edifice.  He  inflicted  great  injury 
upon  the  inflated,  pompous  Popular  Philosophy,  for  he 
exposed  its  emptiness  as  but  few  were  able  to  do.  He 
opposed,  with  all  the  force  of  his  rare  satirical  and  logi- 
cal power,  the  attempt  of  the  Rationalists  to  substitute 
the  intuitons  of  Reason  for  the  dictates  of  the  heart 
and  for  the  promptings  of  faith.  "  What  else,"  he  asks, 
"  is  this  modern  theology  when  compared  with  ortho- 
doxy, than  filthy  water  with  clear  water  ?  With 
orthodoxy  we  had,  thanks  to  God,  pretty  much  settled ; 
between  it  and  philosophy  a  barrier  had  been  erected, 
behind  which  each  of  these  could  walk  in  its  own  way 
without  molesting  the  other.  But  what  is  it  that  they 
are  now  doing?  They  pull  down  this  barrier,  and, 
under  the  pretext  of  making  us  rational  Christians, 
they  make  us  most  irrational  philosophers.  In  this  we 
agree  that  our  old  religious  system  is  false,  but  I  should 
not  like  to  say  with  you  [he  is  writing  to  his  brother] 
that  it  is  a  patch- work,  got  up  by  jugglers  and  semi- 
philosophers.  I  do  not  know  of  anything  in  the  world 
in  which  human  ingenuity  had  more  shown  and  exer 


lussing's  opinions.  153 

cised  itself  than  in  it.  A  patch-work  by  jugglers  and 
semi-philosophers  is  that  religious  system  which  they 
would  put  in  the  place  of  the  old  one,  and,  in  doing  so, 
would  pretend  to  more  rational  philosophy  than  the  old 
one  claims." 

It  was  difficult  to  tell  what  Lessing  believed.  His 
publication  of  the  views  of  a  doubter  was  of  itself  a 
proof  that  he  agreed,  to  some  extent  at  least,  with  them. 
This  we  must  grant  as  a  concession  to  his  honesty  and 
common  sense.  And  when  assailed  by  Gotze  and  others 
for  thus  attacking  the  faith  of  the  church,  he  replied 
that,  even  if  the  Fragmentists  were  right,  Christianity 
was  not  thereby  endangered.1  He  rejected  the  letter, 
but  reserved  the  spirit  of  the  Scriptures.  With  him, 
the  letter  is  not  the  spirit  and  the  Bible  is  not  religion. 
Consequently,  objections  against  the  letter,  as  well  as 
against  the  Bible,  are  not  precisely  objections  against 
the  spirit  and  religion.  For  the  Bible  evidently  con- 
tains more  than  belongs  to  religion,  and  it  is  a  mere 
supposition,  that,  in  this  additional  matter  which  it 
contains,  it  must  be  equally  infallible.  Moreover,  reli- 
gion existed  before  there  was  a  Bible.  Christianity 
existed  before  evangelists  and  apostles  had  written. 
However  much,  therefore,  may  depend  upon  those 
Scriptures,  it  is  not  possible  that  the  whole  truth  of  the 
Christian  religion  should  depend  upon  them.  Since 
there  existed  a  period  in  which  it  was  so  far  spread, 
in  which  it  had  already  taken  hold  of  so  many  souls, 
and  in  which,  nevertheless,  not  one  letter  was  written 
of  that  which  has  come  down  to  us,  it  must  be  possible 
also  that  everything  which  evangelists  and  prophets 
have  written  might  be  lost  again,  and  yet  the  religion 
taught  by  them,  stand.     The  Christian  religion  is  not 

1  Kahnis:  History  of  German  Protestantism,  pp.  145-165. 


154  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

true  because  Evangelists  and  apostles  taught  it ;  but 
they  taught  it  because  it  was  true.  It  is  from  their  in- 
ternal truth  that  all  written  documents  must  be  ex- 
plained, and  all  these  written  documents  cannot  give 
it  internal  truth  when  it  has  none.  The  Christian 
religion  is  distinguished  from  the  religion  of  Christ 
the  latter,  being  a  life  immediately  implanted  and  main- 
tained in  our  heart.,  manifests  itself  in  love,  and  can 
neither  stand  nor  fall  with  the  Gospel.  The  truths  of 
religion  have  nothing  to  do  with  the  facts  of  history. 

With   such   opinions   as   these,  expressed  in  great 
clearness  and  conciseness,  who  can  fail  to  perceive  that 
their  tendency  was  to  overthrow  the  traditional  faith 
of  the  church  in  large  portions  of  the  Bible  ?     Who  is 
to  be  the  judge  of  what  is  to  be  retained  and  what 
rejected  ?     Indeed,  if  Lessing  be  right,  the  entire  Scrip- 
ture  record    might   be   abolished    without  doing  vio- 
lence to  religion.     The  effect  of  his  writings  was  de- 
cidedly skeptical.     His  view  of  Christianity  was  merely 
Eesthetical,  and  only  so  far  as  the  Bible  was  an  agent 
of  popular  elevation,  did  he  seem  to  consider  it  valuable. 
He  did  not  dispute  the  facts  of  Scripture  history  be- 
cause of  the  various  accounts  given  of  them  by  the  in- 
spired writers.     Variety  of  testimony  was  no  ground 
for  the  total  overthrow  of  the  thing  testified.     He  re- 
tained the  history  of  the  resurrection  in  spite  of  the 
different  versions  of  it.     "  Who,"  he  asks,  "  has   ever 
ventured  to  draw  the  same  inference  in  profane  history  ? 
If  Livy,  Polybius,  Dionysius,  and  Tacitus   relate  the 
very  same  event,  it  may  be  the  very  same  battle,  the 
very  same  siege,  each  one  differing  so  much  in  the  de- 
tails that  those  of  the  one  completely  give  the  lie  t/ 
those  of  the  other,  has  any  one,  for  that  reason,  ever 
denied  the  event  itself  in  which  they  a°Tee  ?  " 


lessing's  opinions.  155 

We  may  examine  the  entire  circle  of  Lessing's 
literary  productions,  and  we  shall  see,  scattered  here 
and  there  through  them,  sentiments  which,  taken  singly, 
would  have  a  very  beneficial  effect  upon  the  popular 
faith  in  inspiration  and  the  historical  testimony  of  the 
Scriptures.  But,  unhappily,  these  were  overshadowed 
by  others  of  a  conflicting  nature,  and  though  he  did  not 
array  himself  as  a  champion  of  Rationalism,  he  proved 
himself  one  of  the  strongest  promoters  of  its  reign.  He 
considered  his  age  torpid  and  sluggish.  It  was  his  de- 
sire to  awaken  it.  And  he  did  succeed  in  giving  to  the 
chaotic  times  in  which  he  lived  that  literary  direction 
which  we  now  look  back  upon  as  the  starting-point  of 
recent  German  literature.  The  chief  evil  that  he  in- 
flicted was  due  to  the  position  in  which  he  placed  him- 
self as  the  combatant  of  the  avowed  friends  of  inspira- 
tion. He  was  honest  in  his  love  of  truth,  but  he  loved 
the  search  for  it  more  than  the  attainment.  The  key 
to  his  whole  life  may  be  found  in  his  own  words  :  "  If 
God  should  hold  in  his  right  hand  all  truth,  and  in  his 
left  the  ever-active  impulse  and  love  of  search  after 
truth,  although  accompanied  with  the  condition  that 
I  should  ever  err,  and  should  say,  '  Choose !  '  I  would 
choose  the  left  with  humility,  and  say,  '  Give,  Father ! 
Pure  truth  belongs  to  thee  alone  ! '  " 

The  revolution  which  Lessing  wrought  in  literature 
was  only  equaled  by  that  achieved  by  Kant  in  the 
domain  of  philosophy. 

It  has  been  one  of  the  historical  features  of  German 
theology  that  it  has  ever  affiliated  with  philosophy. 
The  mathematical  method  of  Wolf  has  been  a  severe 
blow  to  orthodoxy,  and  it  was  but  partially  counter- 
acted by  the  work  of  Pietism.  But  the  influence  of 
that  copyist  of  Leibnitz  is  only  of  a  piece  with  the  im- 

12 


156  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

pression  made  upon  theology  and  faith  by  every  respect- 
able innovation  in  philosophy.  But  Kant  thiew  all 
others  in  the  shade.  He  was  the  agent  of  a  change  in 
philosophical  thinking,  which  was  destined  not  only  to 
reform  the  old  systems  of  Germany,  but  to  wield  a 
universal  power  over  modern  thought.  He  had  looked 
to  England  for  his  masters,  and  succeeded  in  gaining  a 
thorough  acquaintance  with  the  grave  skepticism  of 
Hume  and  kindred  minds.  He  shut  himself  up  in  his 
native  Konigsberg,  and,  in  all  his  life,  never  traveled 
more  than  thirty  miles  therefrom.  He  had  the  memory 
of  a  pious  Christian  mother  ever  present  to  him,  and  no 
one  can  conjecture  the  probable  influence  that  her  ex- 
ample exerted  upon  his  mental  processes.  The  astute 
philosopher  wrote  of  her  with  the  deepest  feeling  of  his 
nature  when  he  said,  "  My  mother  was  an  amiable, 
sensitive,  pious,  and  devoted  woman,  who  taught  her 
children  the  fear  of  God  by  her  godly  teachings  and 
spotless  life.  She  often  led  me  outside  the  city,  and 
showed  me  the  works  of  God  ;  she  pointed  me  with 
devout  feelings  to  the  omnipotence,  wisdom,  and  good- 
ness of  God  ;  and  inspired  my  heart  with  a  deep  rever- 
ence for  the  Creator  of  all  things.  I  shall  never  forget 
my  mother,  for  it  was  she  who  planted  and  strength- 
ened my  first  germ  of  goodness ;  she  opened  my  heart 
to  the  impressions  of  nature ;  she  awakened  and  ad- 
vanced my  conceptions ;  and  it  has  been  her  instruc- 
tions that  have  exerted  a  permanent  and  wholesome 
influence  upon  my  life." 

First  an  undergraduate  and  afterward  a  professor  in 
the  University  of  Konigsberg,  Kant  quietly  matured 
his  principles,  and  was  in  no  haste  to  communicate  them 
to  the  world.  He  delivered  his  philosophy  to  his 
students  in  the  form  of  lectures,  and  was   extremely 


rant's  critique  of  pure  reason.  157 

careful  not  to  publish  it  until  he  was  sure  that  his  mind 
had  arrived  at  its  final  conclusions.  A  student  named 
Hippel,  who  had  enjoyed  his  intimacy,  was  the  first  to 
give  publicity  to  his  opinions.  He  employed  the 
medium  of  a  novel.  He  forestalled  their  real  author, 
and  Kant  was  compelled  to  explain  the  matter  openly 
as  a  breach  of  faith.  Gradually  the  lecture-hall  at 
Konigsberg  became  full  of  hearers,  who,  in  a  little 
time,  could  gain  admittance  only  with  difficulty.  The 
professor  of  philosophy  was  a  magnet  that  drew  to  that 
bleak  northern  city  students  from  all  parts  of  the  Con- 
tinent. Finally  the  opportune  moment  arrived.  Hav- 
ing written,  rewritten,  altered,  and  abridged  until  he 
looked  upon  his  work  as  beyond  his  power  of  improve- 
ment, he  now  deemed  his  convictions  permanently 
formed.  So  the  Critique  of  Pure  Reason  entered  upon 
its  career  of  victory.  The  literary  and  thinking  world 
had  learned  but  a  little  of  it  in  Hippel's  book ;  and 
now  there  seemed  to  be  no  inclination  to  probe  the  con- 
cise language  of  the  master's  work,  for  the  task  ap- 
peared greater  than  the  fruits  would  justify.  This  hesi- 
tancy was  a  glaring  testimony  to  the  loose  thinking  and 
careless  literary  habits  of  those  days.  But  the  haste 
with  which  Kant  prosecuted  the  authorship  of  his  work, 
apart  from  the  thoughts  employed  in  its  elaboration 
into  a  system,  furnishes  some  ground  of  apology  for  the 
failure  of  the  public  to  fathom  it.  "  I  wrote,"  he  says 
in  a  letter  to  Moses  Mendelssohn,  "  this  product  of  at 
least  twelve  years  of  diligent  reflection  within  a  period 
of  from  four  to  five  months,  paying  indeed  the  greatest 
attention  to  the  contents,  but  unable,  borne  away,  as  it 
were,  upon  the  wings  of  thought,  to  bestow  that  care 
upon  the  style  which  might  have  promoted  a  readier 
insight  into  my  meaning  on  the  part  of  the  reader." 


158  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM 

Several  years  now  pass  by,  and  the  great  work  is 
still  neglected.     Perhaps  it  is  false,  or  mayhap  it  is  ill- 
timed.     Finally  Schulze  hits  upon  the  difficulty  when 
he  conjectures  that,  if  men  only  knew  what  was  in  the 
book  they  would  not  only  read  it,  but  be  ravished  with 
its  contents.    Thereupon  he  issues  his  Elucidations  of 
Kant's  Critique  of  Pure  Reason.     Now  people  begin 
to  open  their  eyes.     The  work  of  Schulze  is  read  by 
everybody,  and  in  turn  it  serves  as  an  introduction  to 
the  work  of  Kant.     Soon  the  universities  and  reading 
circles  demand  it,  and  the  whole  land  is  suddenly  trans- 
formed into  a  race  of  philosophers.     The  popularity  of 
the  work  is  boundless.     It  is  written  in  a  style  adapt- 
ed only  to  systematic  thinkers ;  but  no  matter,  it  be- 
comes a  fashion  to   read  it.     It  is  the  topic  in   stage- 
coaches and  drawing  rooms.     Failure  to  have  perused 
Kant's  book  is  a  mark  of  ignorance  which  receives  re- 
buke on  every  hand.     In  self-defense  eveiy  one  feels 
bound  to  read  it,  if  the  continued  respect  of  friends  cau 
reasonably  be  expected.     The  work  itself  is  interlarded 
with  new  terminology  and  pruned  expressions  that  be- 
tray the  constant  impress  of  the  author's  mind.     So,  in 
a  short  time,  writers  on  the  various   sciences   employ 
these  very  terms  as  at  once  the  best  vehicle  for  the  con- 
veyance of  their  thoughts  and  for  accession  to  popu- 
larity.    It  has  its  opponents  in  Hamann,  Jacobi,  Rei 
marus,  Tiedemann,  and  others ;  yet  he  is  a  bold  spirit 
who  dares  to  attack  this  object  of  universal  favor.     But 
the  opposition  is  insufficient,  and  the  Critique  of  Pure 
Reason   is   too   strong   for  these  hastily-conceived    re- 
joinders.    Every  department  of  inquiry  is  powerfully 
affected  by  it.     Religion,  logic,  metaphysics,  law,  psy- 
chology, aesthetics,  and  education  are  alike  molded  by 
its  plastic  touch.     Holland  and  all  the  north  of  Europe 
arc  vocal  with  its  praises. 


xant's  critique  OF  PUKE  REASON".  159 

And  now  we  may  ask,  why  such  favor  shown  to- 
ward this  riew  apparition  ?  Let  us  delay  a  moment  and 
examine  the  hard- wrought  thoughts  of  this  bachelor-son 
of  an  obscure  saddler.  Kant  had  been  profoundly  dis- 
gusted with  the  want  of  harmony  in  philosophical  spec- 
ulations. The  disagreements  that  he  saw  in  his  own 
time  were  but  the  continuation  of  what,  he  had  learned 
from  history,  was  the  fact  in  the  days  of  the  heathen 
sages.  Following  close  upon  the  footsteps  of  Hume, 
he  asked  :  "  How  far  can  human  reason  go  ?  Where  is 
its  limit  ?  "  His  Critique  was  the  answer.  He  showed 
that,  if  the  loose  methods  of  thought  were  to  be  con- 
tinued, philosophy,  instead  of  being  the  hand-maid  of 
religion,  would  be  unworthy  the  attention  of  the  most 
unlettered  man.  Hence  he  would  recall  reason  from  its 
lofty  flights,  and  direct  its  attention  solely  to  self-con- 
sciousness. Only  by  studying  the  powers  of  the  mind 
as  a  datum,  he  held,  can  any  positive  results  be  gained. 
Using  his  own  illustration  of  his  work,  he  would  do 
for  philosophy  what  Copernicus  had  done  for  astronomy 
— reverse  metaphysics  by  referring  classes  of  ideas  to 
inner,  which  before  had  been  referred  to  outer,  causes. 
He  granted  that,  for  some  things,  man's  reason  is 
sufficient.  The  existence  of  God,  the  doctrine  of  original 
sin,  and  the  soul's  immortality  need  no  Scripture  to 
reveal  them.  They  are  intuitive  subjects  of  knowledge. 
But  these  truths  are  extremely  limited ;  man  needs 
what  nature  has  not  given  him.  Kant's  distinction  be- 
tween practical  and  speculative  reason  was  in  favor  of 
the  former,  since  its  aim  was  wisdom.  But  speculative 
reason  is  often  exerted  for  its  own  gratification.  Hence 
its  results  are  frequently  useless  and  ephemeral.  His 
grand  conclusion  is,  that  no  object  can  be  known  to  us 
except  in  proportion  as  it  is  apprehended  by  our  per 


160  HISTORY   OF   RATIONALISM. 

eeptions,  and  definable  by  our  faculties  of  cognition , 
consequently  we  know  nothing,  per  se,  but  only  by 
appearances.  Our  knowledge  of  real  objects  is  limited 
by  experience. 

With  regard  to  the  general  character  of  the  critical 
system  of  Kant,  an  acute  author  says :  "  It  confined 
itself  to  a  contemplation  of  the  phenomena  of  conscious- 
ness, and  attempted  to  ascertain  by  analysis,  not  of  our 
conceptions  but  of  the  faculties  of  the  soul,  certain  in- 
variable and  necessary  principles  of  knowledge ;  pro- 
ceeding to  define  their  usage,  and  to  form  an  estimate 
of  them  collectively  with  reference  to  their  formal  char- 
acter :  in  which  investigation  the  distinctions  and  defini- 
tions  of  those  faculties  adopted  by  the  school  of  Wolf 
were  presumed  to  be  valid.  It  exalted  the  human  mind 
by  making  it  the  centre  of  its  system ;  but  at  the  same 
time  confined  and  restricted  it  by  means  of  the  conse- 
quences deduced.  It  discouraged  also  the  spirit  of  dog- 
matic speculation,  and  the  ambition  of  demonstrating 
all  things  by  means  of  mere  intellectual  ideas,  making 
the  faculties  of  acquiring  knowledge  the  measure  of 
things  capable  of  being  known,  and  assigning  the  pre- 
eminence to  practical  Reason  rather  than  to  speculation, 
in  virtue  of  its  end — wisdom  ;  which  is  the  highest  that 
reason  can  aspire  to,  because  to  act  virtuously  is  a 
universal  and  unlimited,  but  to  acquire  knowledge  only 
a  conditional,  duty.  It  had  the  effect  of  mitigating  the 
dogmatical  and  speculative  tendencies  of  the  mind,  and 
the  extravagant  attempt  to  prove  everything  by  means 
of  conceptions  of  the  understanding.  It  proscribed  mys- 
ticism and  circumscribed  the  provinces  of  science  and 
belief.  It  taught  men  to  discriminate  and  appreciate 
the  grounds,  the  tendency,  the  defects,  and  partial  views, 
as  well  as  the  excellencies  of  other  systems ;   at  the 


kant's  opinions.  161 

same  time  that  it  embodied  a  lively  principle  for  awak- 
ening and  strengthening  the  interest  attaching  to  gen- 
uine philosophical  research.  It  afforded  to  philosophy 
a  firm  and  steady  centre  of  action  in  the  unchangeable 
nature  of  the  human  mind.  In  general  it  may  be  ob- 
served that  the  theory  of  Kant  constructed  little ;  and 
rather  tended  to  destroy  the  structures  of  an  empty 
dogmatism  of  the  understanding  and  prepare,  by  means 
of  self-knowledge,  the  way  for  a  better  state  of  philo. 
sophical  science ;  seeking  in  reason  itself  the  principles 
on  which  to  distinguish  the  several  parts  of  the  phi- 
losophy." x 

Kant  had  but  little  to  say  concerning  the  positive 
truths  of  Christianity.  He  respected  the  character  of 
Christ,  and  spoke  reverently  of  the  church  and  her  doc- 
trines. Morality,  with  him,  was  developed  into  religion, 
not  religion  into  morality.  The  so-called  revelation  was 
only  the  mythical  copy  of  the  moral  law  already  im- 
planted in  our  nature.  He  believed  in  a  universal  re- 
ligion. Everything  peculiar  and  won  by  struggle 
should  be  given  up  ;  all  strife  of  opinions  should  cease 
at  once.  Kant  designed,  in  the  main,  to  curb  the  illicit 
exercise  of  Reason,  but  his  failure  to  indorse  the  great 
doctrines  of  our  faith,  because  revealed,  threw  him  on 
the  side  of  the  Rationalists.  His  adoption  of  God's 
existence,  the  soul's  immortality,  human  freedom,  and 
original  sin,  was  not  due  to  his  belief  in  these  doctrines 
as  revealed,  but  as  intuitive.  He  gradually  became  a 
devotee  to  his  own  method  of  thinking,  and  it  was  his 
aim  not  to  teach  what  but  how  to  think.  He  often  told 
his  students  that  he  had  no  intention  or  desire  to  teach 
them  philosophy,  but  how  to  philosophize.  It  was 
through  Kant  that   the  terms   Rationalist, — one  who 

i  TenriAmcinu  Manual  of  History  of  Philosophy,  pp.  407-408. 


162  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

declares  natural  religion  alone  to  be  morally  necessary, 
though  he  may  admit  revelation, — Naturalist — one  who 
denies  the  reality  of  a  supernatural  divine  revelation, — 
and  Super  naturalist — one  who  considers  the  belief  in 
revelation  a  necessary  element  in  religion,  came  into  use, 
and  Rationalism  and  Supernaturalism  became  the  prin- 
cipal division  of  theological  schools.1 

As  Descartes  had  broken  up  the  scholastic  philoso- 
phy by  considering  man  apart  from  his  experience,  so 
Kant  now  gave  the  death-blow  to  the  philosophy  of 
Protestant  Germany  by  looking  at  the  mind  apart 
from  its  speculations.  "  The  moral  effect  of  his  philos- 
ophy," says  Mr.  Farrar,  "  was  to  expel  the  French 
Materialism  and  Uluminism,  and  to  give  depth  to  the 
moral  perceptions  ;  its  religious  effect  was  to  strengthen 
the  appeal  to  reason  and  the  moral  judgment  as  the 
test  of  religious  truth  ;  to  render  miraculous  communi- 
cation of  moral  instruction  useless,  if  not  absurd ;  and 
to  reawaken  the  attempt  which  had  been  laid  aside 
since  the  Woman  philosophy  of  endeavoring  to  find  a 
philosophy  of  religion."  2 

Among  the  antagonists  of  Kant,  Jacobi  was  perhaps 
the  most  powerful.  He  was  not  content  that,  in  these 
metaphysical  speculations,  reason  should  reign  supreme. 
His  belief  was  that  feeling  was  of  as  much  importance 
as  the  deductions  of  the  intellect.  He  mastered  t>e 
various  systems  of  philosophy  and  rejected  them,  Kant's 
among  the  rest,  as  unfit  for  the  acceptance  and  pursuit 
of  responsible  beings.  The  two  principles  which  fur- 
nish the  key  to  his  views  were  that  religion  lies  in  the 
feeling,  and  that  this  feeling,  which  exists  in  every 
man's  heart,  is  not  reflected,  but  original.     His  dissatis* 

1  Appleton's  Am.  Cyclopaedia — Article  German  Theology. 
*  Critical  History  of  Free  Thought,  p.  230. 


FICHTE'S    OPINIONS.  163 

faction  with  all  systems  induced  him  to  term  himself  the 
Unphilosophical,  and  it  was  with  utter  disgust  that 
he  was  led  to  declare  the  foundation  of  all  speculative 
philosophy  to  be  only  a  great  cavity,  in  which  we  look- 
in  vain,  as  down  into  an  awful  abyss.  With  him,  as 
with  Coieridge,  Faith  begins  where  Reason  ends. 

The  two  bright  stars  after  Kant  were  Fichte  and 
Schelling.  The  former  commenced  wTith  the  system  of 
the  great  Konigsberg  teacher,  and  developed  it  on  the 
negative  side,  contending  that  the  whole  material  world 
has  no  existence  apart  from  ourselves,  and  that  it  only 
appears  to  us  in  conformity  with  certain  laws  of  our  mind. 
He  aimed  to  found  a  system  which  might  illustrate,  by 
a  single  principle,  the  material  and  formal  properties 
of  all  science  ;  establish  the  unity  of  plan  which  the  crit- 
ical system  had  failed  to  maintain ;  and  solve  that  most 
difficult  of  all  problems  regarding  the  connection  be- 
tween our  conceptions  and  their  objects.  His  views  of 
God  are  the  most  glaring  defect  of  his  sytsem.  He  con- 
tended that  we  cannot  attribute  to  the  Deity  intelli- 
gence or  personality  without  making  him  a  finite  being 
like  ourselves  ;  that  it  is  a  species  of  profanation  to  con- 
ceive of  him  as  a  separate  essence,  since  such  a  concep- 
tion implies  the  existence  of  a  sensible  being  limited  by 
space  and  time ;  that  we  cannot  impute  to  him  even 
existence  without  compounding  him  with  sensible  na- 
tures ;  that  no  satisfactory  explanation  has  yet  been 
given  of  the  manner  in  which  the  creation  of  the  world 
could  be  effected  by  God ;  that  the  idea  and  expectation 
of  happiness  is  a  delusion  ;  and  that,  when  we  form  our 
notions  of  the  Deity  in  accordance  with  such  imagina- 
tions, we  only  worship  the  idol  of  our  own  pa&sions, — 
the  prince  of  this  world.1 

1  Tennemann,  Manual  of  History  of  Philosophy,  pp.  429-430. 


164  HISTOEY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Schelling  was  a  man  of  ardent,  sanguine  tempers 
nient,  and  it  was  his  natural  proclivities  that  gave  rise 
to  his  system  of  philosophy.  He  attributes  a  real  ex- 
istence to  the  material  as  well  as  to  the  immaterial 
world,  but  permits  it  a  different  mode  of  existence 
He  makes  history  a  necessity.  This  natural  philosophy 
conveys  to  us  no  knowledge  of  God,  and  the  little  it 
does  reveal  appears  opposed  to  religion.  What  God  per- 
forms takes  place  because  it  must  be.  Schelling  created 
two  opposite  and  parallel  philosophic  sciences,  the 
transcendental  philosophy  and  the  philosophy  of  nature. 
He  was  a  pantheist  in  identifying  the  Deity  with  nature, 
and  in  making  Him  subject  to  laws.  He  clothed  his  ideas 
in  the  beautiful  fancies  of  his  own  vivid  imagination, 
and  in  him  we  find  the  poet,  not  giving  forth  verses  from 
his  lyre,  but  delivering  philosophical  oracles. 

What  Schleiermacher  was  to  theology  Hegel  became 
to  philosophy.  He  was  the  turning-point  from  doubt 
and  fruitless  theories  to  a  more  positive  and  settled  sys- 
tem of  thinking.  He  was,  when  young,  a  decided  Ra- 
tionalist ;  and  his  Life  of  Christ,  though  yet  unpub- 
lished, is  said  by  one  who  has  seen  it  to  be  a  represen- 
tation of  the  Messiah  as  a  divine  man,  in  whom  all  is 
pure  and  sublime,  and  who  made  himself  remarkable 
chiefly  by  his  triumphs  over  vice,  falsehood,  hatred  and 
the  servile  spirit  of  his  age.  He  endeavored  to  explain 
the  reason  for  Christianity  in  the  world.  He  longed  for 
a  positive  religion.  His  philosophy  is  reducible  to  a 
philosophy  of  nature,  which  has  quite  a  different  mean' 
ing  from  that  of  Schelling,  for,  with  Hegel,  it  is  only  the 
expression  of  the  passage  to  another  being ;  and  to  the 
philosophy  of  the  mind,  which  considers  thought  reflect- 
ing itself  on  itself,  and  showing  itself  by  the  mind  in  the 
sciences  of  law  and  morality,  in  the  state,  history,  reli- 


SERVICE   OF   THE   PHILOSOPHERS.  165 

gion,  and  the  arts.  The  religion  which  is  deduced  from 
this  system  may  be  said  to  consist  of  the  objective  ex- 
istence of  the  infinite  mind  in  the  finite,  for  mind  is  only 
foi  mind ;  consequently  God  exists  only  in  being  thought 
of  and  in  thinking.  In  the  philosophy  of  nature  intel. 
ligence  and  God  are  lost  in  objective  nature.  Hegel  al- 
lows them  a  distinct  and  separate  existence,  but  refers 
them  to  a  common  principle  which,  according  to  him,  is 
the  absolute  idea,  or  God.  In  this  case,  objective  nature 
is  only  the  absolute  idea  going  out  of  itself,  individuali- 
zing itself,  and  giving  itself  limits,  though  it  is  infinite. 
Thus  the  intelligence  of  all  men,  and  external  nature, 
are  only  manifestations  of  the  absolute  idea.  It  is  a 
mournful  tribute  that  M.  Saintes  pays  to  his  memory 
when  he  says,  as  the  sum  of  his  labors,  that  "  he  per- 
verted all  the  Christian  opinions  which  he  attempted  to 
restore."  As  little  flattering  is  M.  Quinet's  testimony, 
that  "  he  saw  in  Christianity  no  more  than  an  idea,  the 
religious  worth  of  which  is  independent  of  the  testimonies 
of  history.'' 

This  was  indeed  a  race  of  thinkers  who  have  been 
equaled  in  strength  in  but  few  periods  of  history. 
Coming  in  regular  succession,  their  systems  sprang  from 
Kant's  philosophy,  and  constituted  the  growth  of  his 
wonderful  achievement.  They  tended  to  withdraw  the 
flippant  spirit  of  criticism  to  a  more  serious  and  modest 
path  of  inquiry,  and  to  make  men  look  more  at  their  own 
weakness  than  at  their  greatness.  But  what  a  mass  of 
subtleties  do  we  have  to  pass  through  to  get  at  the  sub- 
stance of  their  speculations !  There  is  something  so 
unsatisfactory  in  the  study  of  them,  that  we  find  relief 
only  in  the  knowledge  that  the  Bible  contains  the  true 
basis  of  all  sound  thinking  on  the  great  themes  con- 
nected with  the  well-being  and  destiny  of  man.     The 


166  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM 

plainest  statements  of  the  word  of  God  are  more  val- 
uable than  all  these  vaporings  about  the  non-Ego,  the 
Ideal,  and  Self -hood.     Simplicity  is  bliss. 

"Yon  cottager  who  weaves  at  her  own  door 
Pillow  and  bobbins,  all  her  little  store, 
Content  though  mean,  and  cheerful  if  not  gay, 
Shuffling  her  threads  about  the  live  long  day, 
Just  earns  a  scanty  pittance,  and  at  night 
Lies  down  secure,  her  heart  and  pocket  light ; 
She  for  her  humble  sphere  by  nature  fit, 
Has  little  understanding  and  no  wit ; 
Receives  no  praise,  but  though  her  lot  be  such, 
Toilsome  and  indigent,  she  renders  much ; 
Just  knows  and  knows  no  more,  her  Bible  true; 
And  in  that  charter  reads  with  sparkling  eyes 
Her  title  to  a  treasure  in  the  skies." 

But  yet  we  grant  to  these  men  the  meed  of  having 
meant  well,  and  of  reforming  the  philosophy  and  litera- 
ture of  their  times.  The  immediate  effect  of  their 
views  was  decidedly  in  favor  of  Rationalism,  because 
they  almost  uniformly  deny  the  absolute  authority  of 
the  Scriptures.  They  grant  too  much  to  reason.  While 
Kant  would  drive  the  truant  mind  back  to  self-contem 
plation,  he  terminates  by  giving  to  reason  a  value  and 
dignity  so  great  that  it  becomes  entitled  to  decide  upon 
matters  of  faith.  Their  theories,  spun  out  at  such 
length  and  concluding  in.  so  little  satisfaction,  make  us 
rejoice  that  we  have  not  to  depend  upon  philosophy  for 
guidance  in  matters  of  either  the  intellect  or  heart. 
They  thought  independently  of  the  Bible,  and  here  lies 
the  ground  of  all  failure  to  obtain  positive  results  in 
metaphysics.  The  Scriptures  furnish  everything  noble 
and  real,  and  when  philosophy  aims  to  supply  a  sub- 
stitute for  them  it  always  labors  in  vain. 

We  wonder  at  the   tropic  luxuriance  of  Schelling's 
thoughts,  but  we  are  soon  convinced  of  their  little  prac- 


INSUFFICIENCY    OF    SPECULATIVE   PHILOSOPHY.        J  67 

tical  purpose  when  we  recall  the  fact  that  he  considered 
the  revelation  of  the  gospel  as  no  more  than  one  of  the 
accidents  of  the  eternal  revelation  of  God  in  nature  and 
in  history.  Jf  Schelling  and  all  these  strong  minds  had 
commenced  their  investigations  with  the  word  of  God 
as  their  basis,  there  is  no  telling  how  far  they  might 
have  ministered  to  an  immediate  and  thorough  revival  of 
faith.  But  failing  to  do  this,  their  work  has  been  more 
doubtful  and  tardy.  It  is  a  very  plain  fact  that  the 
church  cannot  look  to  any  other  than  to  a  Christian 
philosophy  for  the  conservation  or  regeneration  of  her 
torpid  powers.  Never  has  she  been  thoroughly  bene- 
fited by  the  immediate  agency  of  any  other  system. 

There  is  one  way,  however,  in  which  speculative 
philosophy  has  indirectly  proved  the  aid  of  religion.  It 
has  strengthened  and  quickened  the  mental  action  of  the 
people,  and  they  have  through  its  agency,  been  able  to 
look  with  clearer  ken  upon  the  truths  of  Scripture. 
However,  after  it  has  reached  the  goal  of  its  task,  we 
see  so  little  that  is  truly  valuable  and  worth  preserving 
that  we  are  compelled  to  foil  back  upon  the  Christian 
revelation  as  our  only  chart  on  the  troubled  sea  of  met- 
aphysical discussion.  When  we  look  at  the  field  opened 
for  thought  in  the  word  of  God  we  find  it  ample  and 
safe.  It  would  be  well  for  every  young  mind  about  en- 
tering upon  the  uncertain  mazes  of  philosophical 
speculation,  to  ponder  deeply  over  these  golden  words 
from  Isaac  Taylor's  Saturday  Morning :  "  That  portion 
of  Heavenly  Wisdom  which,  under  such  circumstances, 
survives  and  is  cherished,  will  be  just  the  first  articles  of 
belief, — the  Saving  Rudiments  of  Spiritual  Life.  Of 
these  the  Head  of  the  church  himself  takes  care  lest 
faith  should  utterly  disappear  from  the  earth.  But  be- 
side the  inestimable  jewel  of  elementary  knowledge — 


168  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  price  of  which  can  never  be  told — does  there  not 
rest  within  the  folds  of  the  Inspired  Book  an  inex- 
haustible store,  which  the  industry  of  man,  piously  di- 
rected, ought  to  elicit ;  but  which  if  men  neglect  it,  the 
Lord  will  not  force  upon  their  notice  ?  It  is  this  hidden 
treasure  which  should  animate  the  ambition  of  vigorous 
and  devout  minds.  From  such  at  second  hand,  the  body 
of  the  faithful  are  to  receive  it,  if  at  all ;  and  if  not  so 
obtained  for  them,  and  dealt  out  by  their  teachers, 
nothing  will  be  more  meager,  unfixed,  almost  infantile, 
than  the  faith  of  Christians." 


CHAPTER    VII. 

THE  REIGN   OF  THE  WEIMAR  CIRCLE— REVOLUTION  IN 
EDUCATION  AND  HYMNOLOGY. 

The  systems  of  the  great  philosophical  minds  whom 
w  j  have  contemplated  were  remarkable  for  their  har- 
mony. As  we  now  look  back  upon  them  we  do  not  see 
shapeless  and  unfitting  fragments,  but  a  superstructure 
of  rare  symmetry  and  grace.  Jacobi  was  the  leaven  of 
improvement,  and  it  was  the  mission  of  that  devout 
man  to  continue  to  some  extent  the  habit  of  respectful 
regard  for  God's  word  among  intelligent  circles  of 
society.  All  who  were  unwilling  to  become  votaries  of 
reason  were  his  careful  readers  and  enthusiastic  ad- 
mirers. 

What  we  thus  see  developed  in  philosophy  was 
equally  manifest  in  regard  to  literature.  There  arose, 
as  if  by  the  enchanter's  wand,  a  group  of  literary 
giants  at  Weimar,  an  insignificant  town  on  the  outskirts 
of  the  Thuringian  Forest,  who  wielded  an  influence 
which  was  destined  to  be  felt  in  coming  ages.  Through 
a  combination  of  circumstances,  Weimar  became  their 
common  home.  It  grew  into  a  modern  Parnassus,  and 
to  this  day  bears  the  name  of  the  German  Athens. 
Karl  August,  imitating  the  example  of  Augustus 
Caesar,  gathered  around  him  as  numerous  and  powerful 
a  cluster  of  literary  men  as   his  scanty  revenue  would 


170  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

allow.  He  paid  but  little  regard  to  their  theological 
differences ;  all  that  he  cared  for  was  their  possession  of 
the  truly  literary  spirit.  His  little  principality,  of 
which  this  was  the  capital,  could  not  possibly  be  ele- 
vated into  either  a  second  or  third  rate  power.  A  J 
hope  of  great  influence  being  cut  off  in  this  direction, 
he  secured  the  presence  of  those  chiefs  of  letters  who 
gave  him  a  name  and  a  power  secured  to  but  few  in 
any  age.  The  town  of  Weimar  possesses  a  calm  rustic 
beauty  by  which  the  traveler  cannot  fail  to  be  im- 
pressed. You  see  only  a  few  traces  of  architectural 
taste,  but  the  memory  of  the  departed  worthies  who 
once  walked  the  winding  streets  is  now  the  glory  of 
the  place.  There,  the  church  where  Herder  preached 
now  stands ;  near  by,  the  slab  that  covers  the  dust  of 
Wieland  ;  yonder,  the  humble  cottage  of  Schiller,  with 
the  room  just  as  it  was  when  the  mute  minstrel  was 
borne  from  it  to  his  home  in  the  earth ;  across  the 
brook  is  Goethe's  country  villa ;  and  back  in  the  grove, 
the  table  whereon  he  wrote.  There  is  a  quiet  sadness  in 
the  whole  town,  as  if  nothing  were  left  but  the  mere 
recollection  of  what  it  once  was.  How  different  the 
picture  sixty  years  ago,  when  all  the  literary  world 
looked  thither  for  the  last  oracle  from  one  of  these 
high-priests  of  poesy !  Book-publishers  went  there  to 
make  proposals  for  the  editorship  of  magazines,  or  for 
some  other  new  literary  enterprise.  Napoleon  himself 
craved  an  audience  with  Goethe,  and  it  is  the  strongest 
grudge  held  by  the  Germans  against  the  master  of  their 
literature  that  the  oppressor  of  the  fatherland  was  not 
denied  his  request.  Young  men  went  to  Weimar  from 
all  parts  of  Europe  to  kiss  the  hand  of  these  great 
transformers  of  aesthetic  taste.  There  was  not  a  sover- 
eign within  the  pale  of  civilization   who  did  not  envv 


herder's  position.  171 

Karl  August's  treasures.  The  story  of  the  literary 
achievements,  of  the  Platonic  friendships,  and  of  the 
evening  entertaiments  of  Weimar,  forms  one  of  the 
most  remarkable  chapters  in  the  whole  history  of  letters. 
The  name  of  Herder  demands  our  prominent  notice 
because  of  its  intimate  connection  with  the  theological 
movement  we  have  been  tracing.  He  was  eminently 
adapted  to  his  times.  Perfectly  at  home  with  his  gen- 
eration, he  looked  upon  his  contemporaries  as  brethren, 
and  aroused  himself  manfully  to  serve  them  in  every  in- 
terest. We  notice  in  all  his  works  a  careful  study  to 
meet  the  emergency  then  pressing  upon  society.  We 
will  not  say  that  Herder  wrote  every  work  just  as  it 
should  have  been,  and  that  he  was  evangelical  through- 
out. This  he  was  not,  but  he  was  greatly  in  advance 
of  his  predecessors.  Amid  the  labyrinth  of  philosoph- 
ical speculations  it  is  interesting  and  refreshing  to  meet 
with  an  author  who,  though  endowed  with  the  mind  of 
a  philosopher,  was  content  to  pass  for  a  poet,  or  even 
for  an  essayist.  His  was  a  mind  of  rare  versatility. 
What  he  was  not  capable  of  putting  his  hand  to  scarce- 
ly deserved  the  name  of  study.  In  philosophy,  practi- 
cal religion,  literature,  church  history,  education  and  ex- 
egesis he  labored  with  almost  equal  success.  He  was 
the  instrument  of  God,  not  to  raise  each  of  the  crushed 
elements  of  Christian  power  to  a  lofty  vitality,  but  to 
contribute  to  the  moderate  elevation  of  nearly  every 
one  of  them.  It  might  be  expected  that  his  later  wri- 
tings would  not  abound  in  such  hearty  tributes  to 
devout  religious  life  as  we  find  so  glowingly  expressed 
in  his  earlier  productions.  The  atmosphere  of  Weimar 
favored  a  perverted  growth.  The  personal  acquaintance 
of  the  men  who  surrounded  him  increased  his  literary 
power  but  did  not  make  his  religion  more  fervent  and 

13 


172  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

powerful.  His  training  had  been  in  the  old  purify- 
ing furnace  of  Pietism.  His  father  had  been  a  rare 
specimen  of  that  class  of  devout  householders,  who. 
back  in  the  days  of  Spener  and  Francke,  were  the  real 
glory  of  the  German  people.  Young  Herder  was  ac 
customed  to  family  worship  every  day,  when  the  hard 
duties  of  temporal  life  were  forgotten  by  those  engaged 
in  singing,  in  the  leisurely  reading  of  the  Scriptures,  and 
in  prayer.  One  of  the  first  books  that  had  fallen 
under  his  notice  was  Arndt's  "  Trw  Christianity? 
It  was  this  work  that  inspired  him  with  that  re- 
spect for  religion  which  never  left  him  in  subse- 
quent life. 

Herder's  creed  was  the  improvement  of  man.  He 
expressed  it  in  one  word,  humanity.  But  by  this  term 
he  meant  more  than  most  men  conceive  in  whole  vol- 
umes. With  him,  it  was  that  development  and  elevation 
of  the  race  for  which  every  true  man  should  labor.  We 
do  not  come  into  this  life  with  a  perfect  humanity  ;  but 
we  have  the  germ  of  it,  and  therefore  we  should  con- 
tribute to  its  growth  with  unceasing  energy.  We  are 
born  with  a  divine  element  within  us,  and  it  is  for  the  ma- 
turity of  this  personal  gift  that  all  great  and  good  men, 
such  as  lawgivers,  discoverers,  philosophers,  poets, 
artists  and  every  truly  noble  friend  of  his  race,  have 
striven,  in  the  education  of  children,  by  the  various  in- 
stitutions designed  to  foster  their  individual  taste.  To 
beautify  humanity  is  the  great  problem  of  humanity.  It 
must  be  done  ;  man  must  be  elevated  by  one  long  and 
unwearied  effort,  or  he  will  relax  into  barbarism 
Christianity  presents  us,  in  the  purest  way,  with  the 
purest  humanity. 

Herder  was  greatly  interested  in  the  poetic  features 
of  the  Bible.     His  work  on  Hebrew  Poesy  is  full  oi 


hekdek's  view  of  the  bible.  173 

Lis  warm  attachment  to  the  inspired  pictures  of  early 
oriental  life  and  history.  Whatever  divested  the  Scrip- 
tures of  this  eastern  glow  received  his  outright  indig- 
nation. He  censured  Michaelis  for  having  criticised  all 
the  heart  out  of  the  time-honored  and  God-given  record. 
He  compared  the  critical  labors  of  the  Rationalists  to 
squeezing  a  lemon;  and  the  Bible  that  they  would 
give,  he  said,  "was  nothing  save  a  juiceless  rind."  He 
totally  rejected  the  scientific  reading  of  the  Bible  for 
common  purposes ;  and  maintained,  with  great  ardor, 
that  the  more  simple  and  human  our  reading  of  God's 
word  is,  the  nearer  do  we  approach  God's  will.  We 
must  make  use  of  our  own  thoughts,  and  we  must 
imagine  living  scenes,  with  the  inspired  words  as  our 
thought-outlines.  The  whole  policy  of  the  new  class 
of  critics,  he  believed,  was  a  thoroughly  mistaken  one. 
Instead  of  discarding  the  pictorial  Biblical  beauties,  as 
they  did  with  a  few  hasty  dashes  of  the  pen,  he  would 
elevate  them  to  a  loftier  status,  and  lead  the  rising  gen- 
eration to  imbibe  their  spirit  as  a  useful  element  for 
later  life.  In  his  opinion,  many  of  the  Rationalists  had 
not  the  keen  insight  into  the  marvelous  beauty  of  the 
Bible  which  all  should  possess  who  would  undertake 
to  elucidate  its  language  and  doctrines.  They  were, 
therefore,  not  competent  to  decide  upon  it.  The  only 
proper  method  of  studying  the  Scriptures  for  the  in- 
struction of  others  is  by  the  exercise  of  a  fine  poetic 
sentiment.  Hence  the  best  poet  makes  the  best  exegete. 
This  reminds  us  of  Schiller's  idea  of  historiography. 
Schiller  said  that,  in  his  writing  of  history,  he  did  not 
intend  to  feel  continually  hampered  by  the  sequence  of 
events,  but  that  he  would  write  as  his  own  imagination 
approved.  High  above  facts  would  he  place  aesthetic 
taste.     A  beautiful  fancy  !    But  heaven  be  praised  that 


174  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

all  historians  are  not  Schillers,  and  that  all  commenta- 
tors are  not  Herders. 

From  this  representation  of  Herder's  tenacity  for  the 
records  of  inspiration,  and  particularly  for  the  Mosaic 
accounts,  one  would  be  led  to  infer  that  his  attachment 
was  due  solely  to  his  lofty  views  of  the  supernatural 
3i*igin  of  these  revelations.  But  we  cannot  think  this 
was  the  fact.  A  careful  estimate  of  his  underlying 
sympathies  leads  us  to  conclude  that  he  loved  the 
Bible,  not  because  it  was  inspired,  as  much  as  because 
it  was  the  highest,  earliest,  and  simplest  embodiment  of 
poetry, — for  it  traces  out  those  things  in  our  history 
which  we  are  most  interested  in  knowing.  The  poetic 
beauty  of  the  Scriptures  entranced  him.  Had  each 
chapter  of  our  canon  been  written  in  stately  prose, 
Herder  would  have  been  one  of  its  coldest  admirers. 
He  ransacked  the  myths  and  legends  of  various  nations, 
and  dwelt  upon  the  stories  of  giants  and  demi-gods  with 
scarcely  less  enthusiasm  than  if  discoursing  on  the 
building  of  Babel  or  on  the  gift  of  the  law  on  Sinai. 
Herder  disliked  the  theories  of  Kant  with  cordial  aver- 
sion. Of  course  the  Konigsberg  sage  had  nothing  in 
common  with  the  Weimar  rhapsodist.  Had  Herder 
only  given  a  prominence  to  his  belief  in  the  fact  of  in- 
spiration equally  with  an  admiration  of  the  method  of 
it,  his  service  to  the  cause  of  practical  religion  would 
have  been  incalculable.  Yet,  in  his  views  of  the  person 
of  Christ,  he  was  far  in  advance  of  the  times.  He  con- 
ceived Christ  not  as  a  mere  innovating  teacher,  but  as 
the  great  centre  of  faith.  His  belief  in  the  sufficiency 
of  the  atonement  stands  out  in  bold  contrast  with  the 
barren  faith  of  his  Weimar  associates,  who  had  such 
lofty  ideas  of  human  excellence  that  they  thought  man 
.needed  only  one  thing  more  to  complete  his  perfection, 


herder's   VIEW   OF  CHRIST.  175 

— his  emergence  from  ignorance  into  taste  and  knowl- 
edge. But  Herder  could  see  an  abyss  of  depravity  in 
the  heart  along  with  the  germ  of  excellence.  He  held 
that  Christ  alone  was  able  to  annihilate  the  former  and 
develop  the  latter.  He  believed  that  the  first  three 
evangelists  gave  the  human  side  of  Christ's  character, 
and  that  it  was  John  who  revealed  his  divinity.  With 
these  four  accounts  before  us  we  cannot  be  at  a  loss  to 
form  a  sound  opinion  on  the  mission  of  the  Messiah. 
He  came  to  seek  and  save  the  lost.  What  he  accom- 
plished could  have  been  effected  by  no  other  agency. 
Herder's  own  words  are  :  "  Jesus  must  be  looked  upon 
as  the  first  real  fountain  of  purity,  freedom,  and  salva- 
tion to  the  world."  Of  the  Lord's  Supper  he  said,  on 
his  entrance  upon  his  pastoral  duties  at  Weimar,  "  The 
Lord's  Supper  should  not  be  a  mere  word  and  picture, 
but  a  fact  and  truth.  We  should  taste  and  see  what 
joys  God  has  prepared  for  us  in  Jesus  Christ  wThen  we 
have  intercourse  with  him  at  his  own  table.  In  every 
event  and  accident  of  life  we  should  feel  that  we  are 
his  brethren  and  are  sitting  at  one  table,  and  that, 
when  we  refresh  ourselves  at  the  festival  of  our  Saviour, 
we  are  resting  in  the  will  and  love  of  the  great  King 
of  the  world  as  in  the  bosom  of  the  Father.  The  high, 
still  joy  of  Christ,  and  the  spirit  which  prevails  in  the 
eternal  kingdom  of  heaven  should  speak  out  from  our- 
selves influence  others,  and  testify  of  our  own  love."  It 
is  a  lamentable  reflection,  however,  that  Herder's  lofty 
views  of  the  mission  of  Christ,  which  had  been  formed 
in  the  paternal  home,  were,  in  common  with  many  other 
evangelical  views,  doomed  to  an  unhappy  obscuration 
upon  the  advance  of  his  later  years  by  frequent  inter- 
course with  more  skeptical  minds. 

One  of  the  chief  services  rendered  the  church  by 


176  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

Herder  was  his  persistent  attempt  to  elevate  the  pas- 
toral office  to  its  original  and  proper  dignity.     He  held 
that  the  pastor  of  the  church  should  not  be  solely  a 
learned  critic  but  the  minister  of  the  common  people 
In  his  day,  the  pastor  was  considered  the  mere  instru 
ment  of  the  state,  a  sort  of  theological  policeman  ; — a 
degradation  which  Herder  could  hardly  permit  himself 
to  think  of  without  violent  indignation.     In  his  Letters 
on  the  Study  of  TJieology,  published  in  1780,  and  in 
subsequent  smaller  works,  he  sought  to  evoke  a  gener- 
ation of  theologians  who,  being  imbued  with  his  own 
ideas  of  humanity,  would  betake  themselves  to  the  edi- 
fication of  the  humble  mind.     He  would  eject  scholasti- 
cism from  the  study  of  the  Bible,  and  show  to  his  read- 
ers that  simplicity  of  inquiry  is  the  safest  way  to  happy 
results.    He  would  place  the  modern  pastor,  both  in  his 
relations  to  the  cause  of  humanity  and  in  the  respect 
awarded  him  by  the  world,  close  beside  the  patriarch 
and  prophet  of  other  days.     And  that  man,  in  his  opin- 
ion, was  not  worthy  the  name  of  pastor  who  could  neg- 
lect the  individual  requirements  of  the  soul.     Accord- 
ing to  Herder,  the  theologian  should  be  trained  from 
childhood  into  the  knowledge  of  the  Bible  and  of  prac- 
tical religion.     Youths  should  have  ever  before  them 
the  example  of  pious  parents,  who  were  bringing  them 
up  with  a  profound  conviction  of  the  doctrines  of  di 
vine  truth.     To  choose  theology  for  a  profession  from 
mercenary  aims  would  preclude  all  possibility  of  pastoral 
usefulness.     "  Let  prayer  and  reading  the  Bible  be  your 
morning  and  evening  food,"  was  his  advice  to  a  young 
preacher.     Some  of  the  most  eloquent  words  from  his 
pen  were  written  against  the  customary  moral  preaching 
which  so  much  afflicted  him.     "  Why  don't  you  come 
down  from  your  pulpits,"  he  asks,  "  for  they  cannot  be 


HERDER    AS    A    PREACHER.  177 

of  any  advantage  to  you  in  preaching  such  things? 
What  is  the  use  of  all  these  Gothic  churches,  altars,  and 
such  matters  ?  No,  indeed !  Religion,  true  religion, 
must  return  to  the  exercise  of  its  original  functions,  or  a 
preacher  will  become  the  most  indefinite,  idle,  and  in- 
different thing  on  earth.  Teachers  of  religion,  true  ser- 
vants of  God's  word,  what  have  you  to  do  in  our  cen- 
tury ?  The  harvest  is  plenteous,  but  the  laborers  are 
few.  Pray  the  Lord  of  the  harvest  that  he  will  send 
out  laborers  who  will  be  something  more  than  bare 
teachers  of  wisdom  and  virtue.  More  than  this,  Help 
yourselves ! " 

The  counsel  given  by  Herder  to  others  was  practised 
first  by  himself.  He  lived  among  critical  minds,  who 
spurned  humble  pastoral  work,  but  he  felt  it  his  duty, 
and  therefore  discharged  it  to  the  best  of  his  ability. 
His  preaching  was  richly  lucid,  and  not  directed  to  the 
most  intelligent  portion  of  his  auditors.  He  took  up 
a  plain  truth  and  strove  to  make  it  plainer.  Yet,  while 
the  masses  were  most  benefited  by  his  simplicity  of 
pulpit  conversation,  those  gifted  men  who  thought  with 
him  arose  from  their  seats  profoundly  impressed  with 
the  dignity  and  value  of  the  gospel.  A  witty  writer 
of  the  time,  Sturz,  gives  an  account  of  Herder's  preach- 
ing that  throws  some  light  upon  the  manner  in  which 
the  plain,  earnest  exposition  of  God's  word  always 
affected  the  indifferent  auditor.  "You  should  have 
seen,"  says  this  man,  "  how  every  rustling  sound  was 
hushed  and  each  curious  glance  was  chained  upon  him 
in  a  very  few  minutes.  We  were  as  still  as  a  Moravian 
congregation.  All  hearts  opened  themselves  spontane- 
ously ;  every  eye  hung  upon  him  and  wept  unwonted 
tears.  Deep  sighs  escaped  from  every  breast.  My 
dear  friend,  nobody  preaches  like  him.     Else  religion 


178  HISTOKY    OF   EATIONALISM. 

would  be  to  every  one  just  what  it  should  be,  the  most 
valuable  and  reliable  friend  of  men.  He  explained  the 
gospel  of  the  day  without  fanaticism,  yet  with  a  grand 
simplicity  which  needed  not  to  ransack  the  world  for 
its  wisdom,  its  figures  of  speech,  or  its  scholastic  arts. 
It  was  no  religious  study,  hurled  in  its  three  divisions 
at  the  heart  of  stony  sinners ;  nor  was  it  what  some 
would  call  a  current  article  of  pulpit  manufacture.  It 
was  no  cold,  heathen,  moral  lecture,  which  sought  noth- 
ing but  Socrates  in  the  Bible,  and  would  therefore  teach 
that  we  can  do  without  both  Christ  and  the  Scriptures. 
But  he  preached  the  faith  which  works  by  love,  the 
same  which  was  first  preached  by  the  God  of  love,  the 
kind  which  teaches  to  suffer  and  bear  and  hope,  and 
which,  by  its  rest  and  contentment,  rewards  bountifully 
and  independently  of  all  the  joys  and  sorrows  of  the 
world.  It  seems  to  me  that  the  scholars  of  the  apostles 
must  have  preached  thus,  for  they  did  not  tie  them- 
selves down  to  the  hard  dogmatics  of  their  faith,  and 
therefore  did  not  play  with  technical  terms,  as  children 
with  their  counting  pennies."  William  von  Humboldt 
said  of  Herder's  sermons  that  they  were  "  very  attrac- 
tive :  one  always  found  them  too  short,  and  wished 
them  of  double  length."  Schiller  spoke  of  his  sermons 
as  plain,  natural,  and  adapted  to  the  common  life,  and 
adds  that  Herder's  preaching  was  "  more  pleasing  to  him 
than  any  other  pulpit  exercise  to  which  he  had  ever 
listened." 

Herder  was  the  great  theological  writer  of  Weimar, 
and  as  such,  his  impression  upon  theology  and  religion 
in  general  was  decided.  Though  he  opposed  the  Kant- 
ian philosophy,  because  of  its  petrifying  tendency,  his 
antagonism  was  counteracted  by  others  of  the  Weimar 
celebrities.      Goethe  and    Schiller   eclipsed    all   other 


SCHILLER    THE   POET   OF   FREEDOM.  179 

names  in  their  department  of  thought,  and  were  the 
culmination  of  the  new  type  of  literature.  Herder 
might  preach,  but  it  was  only  to  a  comparatively  small 
world.  Goethe  and  Schiller  were,  on  all  points  of  lit- 
erature, the  oracles  of  Europe.  Like  Kant,  they 
stamped  their  own  impress  upon  theology,  which  at  that 
day  was  plastic  and  weak  beyond  all  conception.  Un- 
der the  Konigsberg  thinker  it  became  a  great  philo- 
sophical system  as  cold  as  Mont  Blanc.  Then  came 
Poetry  and  Eomance,  which,  though  they  could  give  a 
fresh  glow  to  the  face,  had  no  power  to  breathe  life  into 
the  prostrate  form. 

Schiller  shares  with  Goethe  the  loftiest  niche  in  the 
pantheon  of  German  literature.  But  the  former  is  more 
beloved  than  the  latter,  for  the  reason  that  his  country- 
men think  that  he  had  more  soul.  Schiller  endeared 
himself  to  his  land  because  of  his  ardent  aspirations  to 
political  freedom.  The  poet  of  freedom  is  long-lived, 
and  France  will  no  sooner  forget  her  Beranger,  nor 
America  her  Whittier,  than  the  German  fatherland  will 
become  oblivious  of  Schiller.  Like  Herder,  Schiller  had 
been  trained  carefully  in  household  religion.  In  his 
earliest  outbursts  of  religious  feeling  there  prevailed  that 
ardent  and  devout  spirit  which,  had  it  been  fostered  by 
a  healthy  popular  taste,  might  have  matured  into  some- 
thing so  transcendently  brilliant  and  useful,  that  the 
writer  of  The  Robbers  would  have  proved  one  of  the 
reformers  of  his  people.  If  his  education  had  reaped  its 
appropriate  harvest,  his  probable  bearing  upon  the  re- 
generation of  Germany  can  be  but  faintly  imagined  by 
the  aid  of  Klopstock's  example.  These  were  the  sincere 
thoughts  of  Schiller's  over-burdened  soul  when,  one 
Sabbath  in  1777,  he  addressed  himself  to  the  Deity : 
"  God  of  truth,  Father  of  light.     I  look  to  thee  with  the 


180  HISTORY   OF    RATIONALISM. 

first  rays  of  the  morning  sun,  and  I  bow  before  thee. 
Thou  seest  me,  O  God !  Thou  seest  from  afar  every 
pulsation  of  my  praying  heart.  Thou  knowest  well  my 
earnest  desire  for  truth.  Heavy  doubt  often  veils  my 
soul  in  night ;  thou  knowest  how  anxious  my  heart  is 
within  me,  and  how  it  goes  out  for  heavenly  light.  Oh 
yes !  A  friendly  ray  has  often  fallen  from  thee  upon 
my  shadowed  soul.  I  saw  the  awful  abyss  on  whose 
brink  I  was  trembling,  and  I  have  thanked  the  kind 
hand  that  drew  me  back  in  safety.  Still  be  with  me, 
my  God  and  Father,  for  these  are  days  when  fools  stalk 
about  and  say,  '  there  is  no  God.'  Thou  hast  given  me 
my  birth,  O  my  Creator,  in  these  days  when  supersti- 
tion rages  at  my  right  hand  and  skepticism  scoffs  at  my 
left.  So  I  often  stand  and  quake  in  the  storm ;  and 
oh,  how  often  would  the  bending  reed  break  if  thou 
didst  not  prevent  it ;  thou,  the  mighty  Preserver  of  all 
thy  creatures  and  Father  of  all  who  seek  thee. 

"  What  am  I  without  truth,  without  her  leadership 
through  life's  labyrinths  ?  A  wanderer  through  the 
wilderness,  overtaken  by  the  night,  with  no  friendly 
hand  to  lead  me  and  no  guiding  star  to  show  me  the 
path.  Doubt,  uncertainty,  skepticism !  You  begin 
with  anguish  and  you  end  with  despair.  But  Truth, 
thou  leadest  us  safely  through  life,  bearest  the  torch 
before  us  in  the  dark  vale  of  death,  and  bringest  us 
home  to  heaven,  where  thou  wast  born.  O  my  God, 
keep  my  heart  in  peace,  in  that  holy  rest  during  which 
Truth  loves  best  to  visit  us.  The  sun  refuses  to  reflect 
itself  in  the  stormy  sea,  but  it  is  down  into  its  calm 
mirror-like  flood  that  it  beams  its  face.  Even  thus  keep 
my  heart  at  peace,  O  God,  that  it  may  be  fit  to  know 
thee  and  Jesus  Christ  whom  thou  hast  sent ;  for  this 
aione  is  the  truth  which  strengthens  the  heart  and  ele- 


schiller's  prayer.  181 

fates  the  soul.  If  I  have  truth  then  I  have  Christ ;  if 
I  have  Christ,  then  have  I  God ;  and  if  I  have  God, 
then  I  have  everything.  And  could  I  ever  permit  my- 
self  to  be  robbed  of  this  precious  gem,  this  heaven- 
reaching  blessing  by  the  wisdom  of  this  world,  which 
is  foolishness  in  thy  sight  ?  No.  He  who  hates  truth 
I  will  call  my  enemy,  but  he  who  seeks  it  with  simple 
heart  I  will  embrace  as  my  brother  and  my  friend. 

"The  bell  rings  that  calls  me  to  the  sanctuary. 
I  hasten  thither  to  make  good  my  confession,  to 
strengthen  myself  in  the  truth,  and  to  prepare  myself 
for  death  and  eternity.  O  lead  me  in  such  a  path,  my 
Father,  and  so  open  my  heart  to  the  impressions  of 
truth  that  I  may  be  strong  enough  to  make  it  known 
to  my  fellow  men.  They  know  that  thou  art  their 
God  and  Father,  and  that  thou  didst  send  Jesus  thy 
Son,  and  the  Holy  Spirit  who  was  to  testify  of  the 
truth.  They  can  therefore  have  strength  for  every  grief 
of  this  life,  and  for  the  sorrows  of  death  a  bright  hope 
of  a  happy  immortality. 

"  Now,  my  God,  thou  canst  take  everything  from 
me,  yea  every  earthly  joy  and  blessing ;  but  leave  me 
truth,  and  I  have  joy  and  blessing  enough  ! " 

It  was  the  young  Schiller  who  wrote  these  ecstatic 
words  at  a  time  when  he  contemplated  entering  the 
ministry.  A  few  years  passed  by,  and  all  was  changed. 
He  grew  into  a  sincere  admirer,  we  might  say  wor- 
shiper, of  the  heathen  faith.  He  complained  that  all 
the  life  and  spirit  were  taken  out  of  the  Bible  by  th 
Rationalists,  but  he  did  nothing  to  remedy  their  error 
He  became  absorbed  in  the  spirit  of  classic  times.  The 
antiquity  of  Greece  was  far  dearer  to  him  than  that  of 
Palestine,  and  his  poetic  fancy  was  excited  to  a  greater 
tension  by  the  tales  of  heathen  deities  than  by  the  his- 


lSi,  JISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

tories  of  the  Bible.  He  was  a  devotee  of  Kant,  and  his 
poetry  was  largely  made  up  of  that  philosopher's  meta- 
physics. Yet,  in  Schiller's  hand,  abstractions  became 
living  pictures.  He  knew  how  to  speak  clearly,  and 
his  popularity  is  evidence  to  the  fact  that  his  generations 
of  readers  have  plainly  understood  him. 

While  Schiller  represented  Kant  in  verse,  Goethe 
did  the  same  thing  with  Schelling's  philosophy.  The 
influence  of  the  latter  poet  on  religion  was  very  perni- 
cious. He  expressed  himself  favorably  of  the  Bible, 
but  he  claimed  that  it  could  only  educate  the  people  up 
to  a  little  higher  stage  of  intelligence  and  taste.  He 
was  intensely  egotistic,  and  totally  indifferent  to  all 
religious  belief.  His  false  idolatry  of  art  and  his  enthu- 
siasm arrayed  for  heathendom,  in  all  the  beautiful 
charms  of  the  most  seductive  poetry,  had  a  tendency  fatal 
to  the  cause  of  Christianity  and  to  all  public  and  private 
virtue.1  He  expressed  himself  sometimes  as  very  favor- 
able toward  the  Roman  Catholic  worship,  and  the  ad- 
herents of  that  faith  quote  his  words  of  approbation 
with  evident  pride.  In  his  Autobiography  he  pays  some 
high  compliments  to  the  seven  sacraments  of  the  Ro- 
manists. He  made  several  visits  to  the  beautiful  little 
Catholic  church  dedicated  to  St.  Roch,  situated  just 
above  Bingen  on  the  Rhine.  He  presented  it  with  an 
altar-piece,  and  on  one  occasion  said,  "  Whenever  I  enter 
this  church  I  always  wish  I  were  a  Catholic  priest." 
But  Goethe's  love  and  admiration  of  Catholicism  were 
due  rather  to  his  attachment  to  the  old  works  of  art 
than  to  that  particular  system  of  faith  and  worship. 
The  Romish  church  was  the  conservator  of  the  art- 
triumphs  of  the  Middle  Ages.  She  laid  great  store  by 
her  paintings  and  statuary,  and  had  been  the  patroness 

1  Mohler's  Symbolism :  Memoir  of  Author. 


goethe's  influence  on  theology.  183 

of  the  arts  ever  since  the  wealth  of  noblemen  and  kings 
began  to  be  poured  into  her  lap.  Goethe  loved  her 
because  she  loved  art.  The  key  to  this  only  evidence 
of  religious  principle  lies  in  his  own  words,  as  he  once 
expressed  himself  on  contemplating  a  painting  of  the 
old  German  school.  "  Down  to  the  period  of  the  Ref- 
ormation,'* he  said,  "  a  spirit  of  indescribable  sweetness, 
solace,  and  hope  seems  to  live  and  breathe  in  all  these 
paintings — everything  in  them  seems  to  announce  the 
kingdom  of  heaven.  But  since  the  Reformation,  some- 
thing painful,  desolate,  almost  evil  characterizes  works 
of  art ;  and,  instead  of  faith,  skepticism  is  often  trans- 
parent? 

Our  plan  precludes  an  estimate  of  Goethe's  literary 
achievements.  But  the  influence  of  his  productions  on 
theology  was,  in  the  main,  as  destructive  as  if  he  had 
written  nothing  but  uncompromising  Rationalism.  He 
was  the  head  of  the  Weimar  family.  He  had  a  cool, 
careful  judgment.  Schiller  was  excitable  and  impulsive; 
but  Goethe  was  always  stoical,  regarding  holy  things 
as  convenient  for  the  more  rapid  advance  of  civilization, 
but  not  absolutely  necessary  for  the  salvation  of  the 
soul.  He  directed  the  literature  of  Europe.  In  popu- 
larity Schiller  was  his  peer,  yet  in  real  power  over  the 
minds  and  lives  of  others  no  one  was  a  match  for 
Goethe.  Other  men  at  Weimar,  such  as  Wieland, 
Knebel,  and  Jean  Paul,  were  admired,  but  Goethe  was 
the  cynosure  of  all  eyes.  He  was  always  thinking  what 
next  to  write,  and  when  he  issued  a  new  play,  poem, 
or  romance,  a  sensation  was  made  wherever  the  German 
and  French  tongues  were  spoken. 

Contemporaneously  with  these  literary  influences, 
which  greatly  increased  the  power  and  prestige  of 
Rationalism,  there  was  a  gradual  transformation  of  the 


184  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

training  and  instruction  of  the  children  of  Germany. 
A  thorough  infusion  of  doubt  into  the  minds  of  the 
youth  of  the  land  was  all  that  was  now  needed  to  com 
plete  the  sovereignty  of  skepticism. 

It  cannot  be  disjDuted  that  there  were  serious  do 
fects  in  the  educational  system  already  prevalent.  The 
Latin  schools  instituted  by  Melanchthon  were  still  in 
existence,  but  they  had  become  mere  machines.  Chil- 
dren were  compelled  to  commit  the  dryest  details  to 
memory.  The  most  useless  exercises  were  elevated  to 
great  importance,  and  years  were  spent  in  the  study 
of  many  branches  that  could  be  of  no  possible  benefit  in 
either  the  professions  or  the  trades.  The  primary  schools 
were  equally  defective.  There  was  no  such  thing  as  the 
pleasant,  developing  influence  of  the  mature  over  the 
young  mind.  The  same  defect  had  already  contributed 
to  the  spread  of  Rationalism,  but  the  Rationalists  were 
now  shrewd  enough  to  seize  upon  this  very  evil  and 
use  it  as  an  instrument  of  strength  and  expansion. 

Basedow  was  the  first  innovator  in  education,  and, 
glaring  as  his  faults  were,  he  succeeded  in  effecting 
radical  changes  in  the  entire  circle  of  youthful  training. 
Sprung  from  a  degraded  class,  addicted  to  vulgar  habits, 
and  dissipated  beyond  the  countenance  of  good  society, 
this  man  educated  himself,  and  then  set  himself  up  as 
a  fit  agent  for  the  reformation  of  German  education.1 
He  undertook,  by  his  publication  of  the  Philalethy,  and 
of  the  Theoretical  System  of  Sound  Reason,  to  in 
fuse  new  spirit  into  the  university  method  of  instruc- 
tion. But  he  had  taken  too  large  a  measure  of  his  own 
powers,  and  therefore  made  but  little  impression  upon 
the  circle  to  which  he  had  addressed  himself.  But, 
with  that  restless  determination  which  distinguished 

1  Schlosser,  Hutory  of  the  Eighteenth  Century,  vol.  2,  pp.  33-41. 


Basedow's  educational  scheme.  185 

him  through  life,  he  began  to  appeal  to  the  younger 
mind,  and  contended  boldly  for  the  freedom  of  children 
from  their  common  and  long-standing  restraints. 

From  1763  to  1770  Basedow  deluged  the  whole 
land  with  his  books  on  education ;  and,  uniting  his  ap. 
peals  for  educational  reform  with  strictures  upon  the 
validity  of  the  Scriptures,  he  incurred  the  sore  displeas 
ure  of  Gotze,  Winkler  and  others  of  their  class.  They 
replied  to  him,  but  he  was  always  ready-witted,  and 
the  press  groaned  under  his  repeated  and  sometimes  rib- 
ald rejoinders.  He  told  the  nation,  in  an  Address  to 
the  Friends  of  Humanity,  that  the  old  excesses  would 
soon  be  done  away  with,  since  he  was  about  to  publish  a 
work  and  commence  an  educational  institution  which 
would  rid  the  children  of  the  shackles  of  customary  in- 
struction. He  solicited  subscriptions  for  the  issue  of  his 
elementary  book,  as  it  would  require  numerous  plates, 
aud  be  attended  with  other  unusual  expenses.  His 
manifesto  was  freely  circulated.  Replies  soon  came  to 
him,  with  liberal  subscriptions  from  all  parts  of  Europe. 
Princes  and  people  became  infatuated  with  his  great 
plans  and  wrote  him  their  warm  approval.  They  re- 
mitted large  contributions  for  his  assistance.  A  speci- 
men of  his  Child's  Book  appeared,  and  all  classes  were 
pleased  with  it.  Whatever  he  promised  was  accepted 
with  avidity  because  his  promises  were  at  once  so  flat- 
tering and  exaggerated.  Schlegel  and  other  educators 
tried  in  vain  to  make  the  multitude  believe  that  the 
vulgar  mountebank  could  never  fulfill  their  expectations. 
Basedow  proposed  to  parents,  that  if  they  would 
observe  his  system,  all  languages  and  subjects, — gram- 
mar, history,  and  every  other  study — could  be  learned,  not 
in  the  tread-mill  style,  but  as  an  amusement ;  that  mo- 
rality and  religion,  both  Jewish  and  Christian,  Catholic 


186  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

as  well  as  Protestant,  could  be  easily  taught ;  that  all  the 
old  bonds  of  education  were  henceforth  to  be  broken ; 
and  that  every  great  difficulty  would  hereafter  be  a  pas- 
time. Finally  a  part  of  the  elementary  work  appeared , 
But  one  plan  creating  the  necessity  for  another,  he  soon 
found  himself  immersed  in  the  conception  of  a  great 
philosophical  school,  in  which  not  only  children  but  also 
teachers  were  to  be  trained  for  the  application  of  his 
new  system  to  the  appalling  wants  of  the  people. 
Every  family  became  possessor  of  the  elementary  book, 
and  all  eyes  were  turned  toward  the  Philanihropium 
v  Dessau.  Compared  with  Basedow's  wishes,  this 
vas  but  a  fragment  of  an  institution.  But  upon  its 
existence  depended  the  solution  of  his  lauded  prob- 
lems. 

Just  at  this  time  Germany  was  stirred  by  the 
reading  of  Rousseau's  works  on  popular  education. 
Neither  in  Switzerland  nor  France  had  they  effected 
the  purpose  for  which  they  were  written,  but  among 
the  Germans  their  success  was  complete.  Many  per- 
sons, earnestly  favoring  Rousseau's  doctrine  of  freedom 
from  all  conventional  restraints  in  families,  desired  even 
his  Idyls  of  Life  to  be  introduced  into  the  schools. 
Basedow  and  Rousseau  thought  in  harmony ;  recom- 
mended that  nature,  not  discipline,  should  be  our  guide 
in  education ;  and  that  only  those  stories  should  be 
taught,  of  the  utility  of  which  the  children  are  them- 
selves conscious.  Subscriptions  came  in  profusely,  and 
the  Philanihropium  in  Dessau  commenced  its  existence 
It  was  opened  without  pupils  on  the  twenty-seventh  of 
December,  1774,  and  in  the  following  year  it  was  at- 
tended by  only  fifteen.  It  threatened  to  decline,  but 
rallied  again ;  and  in  1776  a  great  public  examination 
was  held.     Then  Basedow  retired  from  its  curatorship ; 


CAMPE   AND    SALZMAJTN".  18  < 

bnt,  returning  once  more,  his  institution  suffered  under 
his  care,  and  finally  met  with  total  extinction.  The 
great  bubble  of  his  plans  burst.  People  awoke  to  their 
mistake,  and  many  of  his  dupes  began  to  confess  that, 
after  all,  the  old  system  of  education  was  the  best  that 
had  been  devised. 

Bnt  there  were  men  who  had  lighted  their  torches 
at  Basedow's  flame.  Some  who  had  been  temporary  in. 
mates  of  his  PMlanihr  opium  went  to  work  with  great 
perseverance  to  write  juvenile  books.  Though  the  in- 
stitution had  tumbled  to  ruin,  and  public  notice  began 
to  be  turned  from  it,  the  excitement  of  the  popular 
mind  on  the  training  of  youth  had  been  so  intense  that 
the  subject  could  not  soon  cease  to  receive  attention. 
For  this  reason,  the  writers  of  books  for  children  found 
a  large  circle  to  read  them,  and  become  impressed  by 
them.  Herder  had  called  attention  to  the  subject  of 
education  in  some  of  his  most  eloquent  periods.  He 
contended  zealously  for  the  development  of  the  young 
mind.  His  own  words  were,  "  that  it  should  be  the 
chief  aim  of  the  teacher  to  imbue  the  child  with  liv- 
ing ideas  of  everything  that  he  sees,  says,  or  enjoys, 
in  order  to  give  him  a  proper  position  in  his  world,  and 
continue  the  enjoyment  of  it  through  every  day  of  his 
life."  Jean  Paul,  in  his  Levana,  or  the  Doctrine  of 
Education,  called  attention  to  the  necessity  of  the  per- 
sonal training  of  children  by  their  parents  in  opposition 
to  the  old  stiff  method  which,  instead  of  quickening,  only 
stupefied  the  intellect.  Campe  and  Salzmann  had 
been  students  in  Basedow's  Philamthr  opium,  and  sub- 
sequently each  of  them  commenced  a  similar  institution, 
but  of  more  humble  pretensions.  Yet  it  was  not  so 
much  as  practical  educators  as  by  their  writings,  that  they 
were  instrumental  in   effecting   a   powerful   impression 

14 


188  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

upon  the  young  mind  of  Germany.  Canapes  Children?* 
Library  had  a  fascinating  influence  upon  children.  It 
encouraged  their  literary  taste  to  the  exclusion  of  re- 
ligious development.  The  author  advocated  morality, 
but  only  that  which  is  taught  by  the  common  dictates 
of  nature.  He  stoutly  rejected  the  old  Catechism  of 
Luther  as  unfit  to  be  drilled  into  a  youthful  mind,  and, 
unhappily,  he  found  many  sympathizers.  His  Robinson 
the  Younger  was  to  the  Germans  what  Robinson  Cru- 
soe was,  and  still  is,  to  the  English-speaking  world,  and 
from  the  time  that  the  children  read  its  wonderful 
stories  they  looked  with  disgust  upon  the  less  exciting 
histories  of  the  Bible.  From  1775  to  1785  it  captivated 
every  boy  and  girl  who  could  collect  groschen  enough 
to  buy  a  copy.  When  they  had  ceased  reading  it  they 
were  filled  with  the  idea  that  they  were  naturally  per- 
fect. 

Pestalozzi  belongs  rather  to  the  present  than 
to  the  last  century,  but  he  stands  highest  in  the 
catalogue  of  the  educational  reformers  who  arose  dur- 
ing the  meridian  strength  of  Rationalism.  He  was 
a  Swiss  by  birth.  In  1798  he  went  to  Stanz  and  la- 
bored for  the  amelioration  of  the  orphan  children  whose 
parents  had  fallen  in  the  French  wars.1  His  idea  was, 
to  make  the  school  an  educating  family,  into  which  the 
ease  and  pleasure  of  home  should  be  introduced.  He, 
too,  believed  in  man's  natural  goodness,  and  held  that 
true  education  is  not  so  much  the  infusion  of  what  is 
foreign  to,  as  the  educing  of  what  is  native  in  the  child. 
But  he  warmly  encouraged  youthful  acquaintance  with 
the  Bible,  and  said  that  the  history  of  Christ  is  an  in- 
dispensable ingredient  in  the  education  of  every  young 
mind.     But  while  these  few  men,  both  by  their  active 

1  Kahnis :   German,  Protestantism,  p.  216. 


SEEPTICISM    IN    THE   SCHOOLS.  189 

life  and  facile  pen,  contributed  their  share  to  the  im- 
provement of  the  youth  of  Germany,  there  was  a  large 
class  of  writers  for  the  young,  whose  productions  be- 
came as  plentiful  as  autumn  leaves.  Some  were  sen- 
timental, having  imbibed  their  spirit  from  Siegwart, 
La  Nouvelle  Helo'ise,  and  similar  works.  Young  men 
and  women  became  dreamers,  and  children  of  every 
social  condition  were  converted  into  premature  thinkers 
on  love,  romance,  and  suicide.  Whoever  could  wield 
a  pen  thought  himself  fit  to  write  a  book  for  children. 
There  has  never  been  a  period  in  the  whole  current  of 
history  when  the  youthful  mind  was  more  thorough- 
ly and  suddenly  revolutionized.  The  result  was  very 
disastrous.  Education,  in  its  true  import,  was  no  longer 
pursued,  and  the  books  most  read  were  of  such  nature 
as  to  destroy  all  fondness  for  the  study  of  the  Bible,  all 
careful  preparation  for  meeting  the  great  duties  of 
coming  maturity,  and  every  impression  of  man's  incapa- 
city for  the  achievement  of  his  own  salvation. 

The  teachers  in  the  common  institutions  of  learning 
havins;  now  become  imbued  with  serious  doubts  con- 
cerning  the  divine  authority  of  the  Scriptures,  their 
pupils  suffered  keenly  from  the  same  blight.  In 
many  schools  and  gymnasia  miracles  were  treated  with 
contempt.  Epitomes  of  the  Scriptures  on  a  philosoph- 
ical plan  were  introduced.  Ammon,  in  one  of  his 
works,  tells  the  young  people  that  the  books  of  the  Old 
Testament  have  no  divine  worth  or  character  for  us,  ex- 
cept so  far  as  they  agree  with  the  spirit  of  the  gospel. 
As  to  the  New  Testament,  much  must  be  figuratively  un- 
derstood, since  many  things  have  no  immediate  relation 
to  our  times.  Christ  is  a  mere  man.  Dinter  was  a  vo- 
luminous writer  on  theological  subjects,  and  in  hi* 
books   tells   children  of  imperfect   notions  of    former 


190  HISTORY   OF   RATIONALISM. 

times  as  to  God,  angels,  and  miracles.  He  gives  teach- 
ers directions  how  to  conduct  themselves  cleverly  in 
such  matters,  and  afterwards,  in  agreement  with  the 
principles  he  recommends,  he  lays  down  plans  of  cate 
chiziug.  For  example,  there  are  to  be  two  ways  of  cat- 
echizing about  Jonah  ;  one  before  an  audience  not  suffi- 
ciently enlightened,  and  where  all  remains  in  its  old 
state ;  another  for  places  which  have  more  light.  In 
the  prophecies  concerning  the  Messiah  a  double  expla- 
nation is  given  for  the  same  reason.  One  is  the  old  or- 
thodox way,  the  other  a  more  probable  neological  plan. 
A  clever  teacher  is  to  choose  for  himself;  a  dull  one 
may  ask  the  parish  clergyman  how  far  he  may  go. 

As  a  fair  specimen  of  the  kind  of  Biblical  instruc- 
tion then  imparted  to  the  children  of  Germany,  we 
may  adduce  the  example  of  Becker's  Universal  Histo- 
ry for  the  Young.  A  second  edition  was  issued  in 
Berlin  in  1806.  Speaking  of  the  person  and  char- 
acter of  Christ,  the  author  says,  "  Jesus  probably  got 
the  first  notion  of  his  undertaking  from  being  a  friend 
of  John,  and  going  often  to  his  father's,  who  was  a 
priest ;  and  from  the  Gospel  it  appears  that  the  sight  of 
feasts  and  of  the  crowd  of  worshipers  had  a  great  ef- 
fect upon  hi  in.  It  is  doubtful  whether  Jesus  and  John 
were  sent  into  Egypt  for  their  education,  or  were  taught 
by  the  Essenes,  and  then  sent  into  Palestine  as  am- 
bassadors of  that  sect,  with  secret  support  and  accord- 
ing to  arranged  plan.  .  .  .  The  indications  of  the 
Messiah  in  the  Old  Testament  had  produced  great  effect 
on  Jesus  and  John  who  were  both  hot-heads,  such  as 
destiny  raises  for  some  great  purpose.  We  are  in 
danger,  therefore,  of  judging  them  unjustly,  especially 
from  the  great  mixture  of  high  and  low,  clear  and  ob- 
scure in  them." 


BECKER'S    VIEW    OF   CHRIST.  191 

Becker  had  the  modesty  to  say  that  he  would  not 
nndertake  to  fix  the  character  of  Jesus,  but  merely  col- 
lect the  fragments  of  it  from  his  wretclied  biographers. 
The  friends  had  great  mutual  esteem,  but  John  saw  in 
Jesus  a  higher  spirit  than  his  own.  Both  had  the 
same  hatred  of  the  priests,  their  pride  and  hypocrisy ; 
both  thought  the  Mosaic  law  no  longer  fit  for  the  time, 
and  that  the  notion  of  a  national  God  was  the  source  of 
all  the  evil  in  Judea.  After  long  meditation  they  de- 
cided that  Jesus  must  be  the  Messiah  ;  and  JohD  found 
the  part  of  a  precursor  fixed  for  himself.  Christ,  partly 
from  his  power  of  attraction,  and  partly  from  the  hope 
of  future  power,  made  his  disciples  depend  blindly  on 
him.  It  was  only  with  great  caution  that  he  could  un- 
dertake his  great  work  of  destroying  the  priests.  The 
people  were  divided  into  sects ;  and  the  characteristics 
of  his  plan  were,  his  choice  of  the  lowest  people,  and 
his  withdrawing  himself  frequently  from  public  view, 
that  the  priests  might  not  nip  his  plan  in  the  bud.  As 
all  the  prophets  had  worked  miracles,  and  many  were 
expected  from  the  Messiah,  he  too  was  obliged,  accord- 
ing to  Becker,  to  undertake  them  or  renounce  his  hopes. 
No  doubt  he  performed  miracles ;  for  the  power  of  the 
mind  on  the  body  is  such  that  we  need  not  doubt  his 
curing  the  melancholy  and  the  nervous.  As  to  the  mi- 
raculous meals,  raising  the  dead,  curing  the  blind  and 
deaf,  these  things  must  be  attributed  to  the  calculation 
of  his  historians ;  and  we  need  not  hesitate  to  do  so 
after  observing  such  tangible  fabrications  as  Christ's 
walking  on  the  sea,  his  blasting  the  fig  tree,  devils  driven 
into  the  swine,  and  virtue  going  out  of  himself.  In  the 
story  of  Lazarus  we  cannot  help  suspecting  some  secret 
concert.  Christ  did  perform  some  uncontested  miracles, 
however  and  there  was  in  his  manner  that  inexpressible 


102  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

something  which  makes  greatness  irresistible.  The 
mystic  obscurity  thrown  over  his  future  kingdom,  the 
many  parables  he  used,  and  his  assured  manner  of 
speaking  of  future  things,  begot  reverence.  The  pru* 
dence  of  his  judgment  and  the  strictness  of  his  life  are 
praiseworthy.  He  could  pursue  the  destruction  of  old 
usages  but  very  slowly ;  first  he  allowed  the  neglect  of 
the  Sabbath,  and  at  last  made  open  war  with  the 
priests,  "  on  whom  he  lanced  all  the  thunder  of  a  Cice- 
ronian eloquence" 

"John's  death,"  continues  this  model  writer  for 
youth,  "  made  Christ  very  timid.  He  got  away  into 
the  desert  and  ordered  his  followers  not  to  call  him 
Messiah  in  public.  In  his  last  journey  to  Jerusalem, 
the  multitude  protected  him  by  day,  and  he  escaped  by 
night.  His  answers,  made  to  several  questions  at  this 
time,  for  example,  John  viii.  3,  are  still  admired.  He  had 
always  suspected  Judas ;  and  as  he  had  a  presentiment 
that  he  would  come  to  a  bad  end,  he  became  very 
uneasy,  and  yet  was  able  to  exhort  his  disciples.  He 
did  not  really  die  on  the  cross.  Whenever  recognized 
by  his  disciples  afterwards,  he  went  away  directly,  and 
came  back  unexpectedly  and  for  a  short  time.  At  last 
he  disappeared  quickly,  and  let  himself  be  seen  no 
more.  This  end,  like  that  of  Lycurgus,  produced  many 
followers.  By  degrees  all  the  tales  of  the  crucifixion 
were  extended  and  a  Christian  mythology  erected."1 

Becker  was  not  more  extreme  in  his  inculcation  of 
doctrine  than  many  others.  Even  Gesenius,  in  the 
preface  to  his  Hebrew  Beading  Booh,  tells  the  students 
of  the  Bible  that  Gen.  i.  2,  3,  contains  the  description 
of  the  origin  of  the  earth  by  a  sage  of  antiquity ; 
that  the  narrator  has  a  very  imperfect  knowedge  of  na- 

1  Rose,  State  of  Protestantism  in  Germany,  pp.  178-181. 


ALTERATION    OF   THE    HYMNS.  193 

ture,  though  his  description  is  sublime,  that  he  can 
hardly  be  the  first  inventor  of  the  description,  as  the 
principal  outlines  of  it  and  even  the  six  works  of  cre- 
ation are  to  be  found  in  other  religions  of  the  East ;  and 
that  probably  he  only  accommodates  the  general  tradi- 
tion of  the  East  to  the  national  opinions  of  the  He- 
brews,— a  remark  which  applies  especially  to  his  ascrib- 
ing a  mystic  origin  to  the  Sabbath,  a  festival  peculiar 
to  the  Jews. 

Such  was  the  kind  of  theology  in  which  the  German 
youth  were  trained  during  a  period  extending  through 
the  latter  part  of  the  eighteenth  and  the  beginning  of 
the  nineteenth  centuries.  It  is  no  matter  of  astonish 
ment,  then,  that  when  those  children  became  adults 
they  were  rigid  Rationalists  from  the  mere  force  of 
training. 

We  now  come  to  one  of  the  most  inexcusable  deeds 
with  which  Rationalism  stands  charged.  We  refer  to 
the  general  destruction  or  alteration  of  the  time-honored 
German  hymns. 

Both  the  great  branches  of  the  Protestant  church  had 
always  highly  prized  their  rich  hymns,  of  which  there 
were  eighty  thousand  in  existence.  Some  of  the  finest 
lyrics  of  any  tongue  were  among  the  number.  The 
sacred  songs  now  used  in  our  American  churches  are 
not  solely  of  English  origin,  or  of  our  own  production  ; 
but  many  of  the  sweetest  of  them  are  free  versions 
from  the  German  hymnists.  The  Rationalists,  not 
being  content  with  their  present  laurels,  began  in  great 
earnestness  to  despoil  the  hymn-books  of  the  Protestant 
church  of  everything  savoring  of  inspiration  or  of  any 
of  the  vital  doctrines  already  rejected.  They  looked 
upon  those  songs  of  devotion  as  composed  during  the 
iron  ap*°  of  truth,  and  therefore  unfit  to  be  sung  by  the 


194  HISTOEY    OF   EATIONALISM. 

congregations  whose  lot  had  been  cast  in  the  golden 
period.  Should  these  verses  continue  to  be  sung  by 
the  church,  they  would  remain  a  strong  tie  holding 
the  masses  to  the  pitiable  days  of  effete  orthodoxy. 
The  Rationalists  reasoned  correctly,  for,  in  Germany, 
music  is  a  power  which  has  at  times  defied  the  au- 
thority of  popes  and  kings.  It  was,  therefore,  with  a 
sort  of  savage  satisfaction  that  these  destroyers  of  truth 
began  the  work  of  denuding  those  earnest  and  evan- 
gelical hymns  of  all  their  vigor  and  nationality  for  the 
purpose  of  placing  in  their  stead  cold  and  heartless 
moral  verses. 

Klopstock  commenced  the  work  of  alteration,  though 
with  a  good  intention,  by  remodeling  twenty-nine  old 
church  hymns.  Cramer  and  Schlegel  followed  in  his 
steps.  Soon  the  devout  and  animating  songs  of  Gellert, 
Bach,  and  their  brother  minstrels  were  despoiled  of 
the  spirit  that  had  ever  made  them  dear  to  the  popu- 
lar heart  and  familiar  to  the  common  ear.  By  and  by, 
everybody  who  could  make  a  tolerable  rhyme  seized 
some  of  the  master-pieces  of  hymnology,  and  set  them 
up  on  stiff  philosophical  stilts.  New  hymn  books  were 
introduced  into  many  of  the  churches,  and  the  people 
sang  Rationalism.  General  superintendents,  consistorial 
counselors,  and  court  preachers,  rivaled  each  other  in 
preparing  a  new  volume  of  religious  songs  for  the  terri- 
tory under  their  charge.  Individual  towns  and  churches 
had  their  own  selections.  Some  portions  of  Germany, 
especially  Wurtemberg,  refused  awhile  to  give  up  the 
old  hymns,  and  certain  writers  of  the  sterling  character 
of  the  poet  Schubert,  raised  a  loud  and  indignant  voice 
against  the  wretched  vandalism.  But  they  could  ac 
complish  nothing,  and  the  old  hymns  suffered  that  fear- 
ful mortality  which  the  Rationalists  had  by  this  time 


PERVERSION    OF    SACRED    MUSIC.  195 

become  so  able  to  inflict  on  almost  everything  of  value. 
It  is  a  lamentable  scene  to  see  those  reckless  doubters 
sit  down  with  scalpel  in  hand  to  dissect  as  pure  and  in 
spiring  hymns  as  are  to  be  found  in  the  devotional 
literature  of  any  nation.  For  a  good  sacred  song  is 
only  complete  just  as  its  author  finishes  it.  If  an  au- 
thorized hymn  committee  attempt  to  alter  it,  they  fill 
it  at  once  with  icicles.  They  can  no  more  improve  it 
by  emendations  than  they  can  improve  a  rose  by  the 
use  of  a  penknife.  Each  clipping  or  puncture  destroys 
some  natural  charm. 

But  the  music  accompanying  the  hymns  was  doomed 
to  a  like  fate.  The  old  chorals,  which  had  been  linger, 
ing  in  those  renowned  gothic  temples  ever  since  the 
days  of  Luther,  were  so  altered  as  to  stand  upon  the 
same  footing  with  the  hymns  themselves.  All  senti- 
ment was  extracted,  as  quite  out  of  place,  and  sublimity 
was  made  to  give  way  to  a  more  temperate  and  stoical 
standard.  In  due  time  the  Rationalists  effected  their  pur- 
pose. Secular  music  was  introduced  into  the  sanc- 
tuary ;  an  operatic  overture  generally  welcomed  the 
people  into  church,  and  a  march  or  a  waltz  dismissed 
them.  Sacred  music  was  no  longer  cultivated  as  an  ele- 
ment of  devotion.  The  oratorios  and  cantata  of  the 
theatre  and  beer-garden  were  the  Sabbath  accompani- 
ments of  the  sermon.  The  masses  consequently  began 
to  sing  less ;  and  the  period  of  coldest  skepticism  in 
Germany,  like  similar  conditions  in  other  lands,  was  the 
season  when  the  congregations,  the  common  people,  and 
the  children  sang  least  and  most  drowsily. 

"We  now  behold  Protestant  Germany  in  the  full 
possession  of  a  shrewd,  powerful,  and  aggressive  system 
of  infidelity.  The  most  thorough  student  of  church  his- 
tory  must   conclude    that    no    other   kind  of   skepti- 


196  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

cism  has  received  more  aid  from  external  sources. 
Everything  that  appeared  on  the  surface  of  the  times 
contributed  its  mite  toward  the  spiritual  petrification 
of  the  masses.  Hamann,  Oetinger,  Reinhard,  Lavater. 
and  Storr  were  insufficient  for  the  great  task  of  coun- 
teraction, while  Rationalism  could  count  its  strong 
men  by  the  score  and  hundred.  Literature,  philosophy, 
history,  education,  and  sacred  music  were  so  influenced 
by  increasing  indifference  and  doubt  that  when  the 
people  awoke  to  their  condition  they  found  themselves 
in  a  strange  latitude  and  on  a  dangerous  coast.  But 
they  thought  themselves  safe.  They  could  not  see  how 
each  new  feature  in  politics,  literature,  and  theology 
was  affecting  them  in  a  remarkable  manner ;  and  how 
so  many  influences  from  opposite  quarters  could  con- 
tribute to  the  same  terrible  result, — the  total  overthrow 
of  evangelical  faith. 


CHAPTER    VIII. 

DOCTRINES    OF    RATIONALISM    IN  THE    DAT    OP  ITS 

STRENGTH. 

The  church  now  presented  a  most  deplorable 
aspect.  Philosophy  had  come,  with  its  high-sounding 
terminology,  and  invaded  the  hallowed  precincts  of 
Scriptural  truth.  Literature,  with  its  captivating  notes, 
had  well-nigh  destroyed  what  was  left  of  the  old  Pie- 
tistic  fervor.  The  songs  of  the  church  were  no  longer 
images  of  beauty,  but  ghastly,  repulsive  skeletons.  The 
professor's  chair  was  but  little  better  than  a  heathen 
tripod.  The  pulpit  became  the  rostrum  where  the 
shepherdless  masses  were  entertained  with  vague  essays 
on  such  general  terms  as  righteousness,  human  dignity, 
light,  progress,  truth,  and  right.  The  peasantry  re- 
ceived frequent  and  labored  instructions  on  the  raising 
of  cattle,  bees,  and  fruit.  The  poets  of  the  day  were 
publicly  recited  in  the  temples  where  the  Reformers 
had  preached.  Wieland,  Herder,  Schiller,  and  Goethe 
became  more  familiar  to  the  popular  congregations  than 
Moses,  David,  Paul,  or  even  Christ.  By  this  time  we 
might  reasonably  expect  the  harvest  from  Sender's  fa- 
7orite  theories.  There  was  no  school  as  yet  by  which 
he  worked  upon  the  public  mind,  but  the  greater  portion 
of  theologians  caught  up  scrap-thoughts  from  his  opin- 
ions and  now  dealt  them  out  in  magnified  proportions 


198  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

to  the  masses  who,  like  their  Athenian  predecessor, 
were  ever  anxious  to  learn  what  was  new.  That  so 
many  influences  as  we  have  seen  in  force  should  com- 
pletely subdue  orthodoxy  is  not  wonderful,  when  we 
consider  first  the  minds  that  originated  them,  and 
then  the  dull  and  frigid  condition  of  the  church. 

But,  as  the  fruit  of  these  influences,  there  was  no 
common  system  of  theology  adopted  by  the  Rationalists. 
The  reason  is  obvious.  Rationalism  was  not  an  organ- 
ism, and  therefore  it  could  have  no  acknowledged  creed. 
Its  adherents  were  powerful  and  numerous  scouting- 
parties,  whose  aim  was  to  harass  the  flanks  of  the 
enemy,  and  who  were  at  liberty,  when  occasion  re- 
quired, to  divide,  subdivide,  take  any  road,  or  attack  at 
any  point  likely  to  contribute  to  the  common  victory. 
One  writer  came  before  the  public,  and  threw  doubt 
on  some  portions  of  the  Scriptures.  He  was  followed 
by  another  who,  while  conceding  the  orthodox  view  of 
those  very  passages,  would  discard  other  parts,  even 
whole  books,  as  plainly  incredible.  A  third  discussed 
the  character  and  mission  of  Christ,  and  imputed  a  cer- 
tain class  of  motives  to  him.  A  fourth  attributed  to 
him  totally  different,  if  not  contradictory,  impulses. 
There  is  no  one  book,  therefore,  in  which  we  find  an 
undisputed  Rationalistic  system,  for  the  work  that  may 
represent  one  circle  will  give  but  a  meagre  and  false 
view  of  another.  Besides,  what  the  most  of  the  Ra- 
tionalists might  agree  upon  at  one  stage  of  the  develop- 
ment of  their  skepticism,  would  be  rejected  by  others, 
living  a  few  years  after  them.  The  only  means,  there 
fore,  by  which  we  are  enabled  to  arrive  at  some  under- 
standing concerning  their  opinions  is  to  fix  upon  the 
time  of  their  meridian  strength,  and  then  to  hear  what 
their  representative  men  of  that  period  say  of  the  truths 
ui  revelation. 


RELIGION EXISTENCE   OF    GOD.  199 

Now  it  cannot  be  doubted  that  Rationalism  was  most 
powerful  after  the  decided  impression  made  upon  theol- 
ogy by  the  philosophical  direction  commenced  by  Kant, 
and  by  that  of  literature  inaugurated  by  Lessing  and 
followed  by  the  Weimar  poets.  We  are  consequently 
under  the  necessity  of  hearing  the  statements  of  ac- 
knowledged Rationalists  who  nourished  during  this 
time,  and,  out  of  the  chaos,  arrive  at  the  most  probable 
and  general  views  entertained  by  the  people. 

We  shall  see  that  the  scene  of  spiritual  desolation 
was  repulsive  enough  to  make  every  servant  of  Christ 
wish,  with  Wordsworth, — 

"  I'd  rather  be 
A  pagan,  suckled  in  a  creed  outworn  ; 
So  might  I  standing  on  this  pleasant  lea, 
Have  glimpses  that  would  make  me  less  forlorn — 
Have  sight  of  Proteus  rising  from  the  sea, 
Or  hear  old  Triton  blow  his  wreathed  horn." 

Religion.  All  religion  was  held  by  the  Rationalists 
to  be  mere  morality.  As  to  any  such  thing  as  conver 
sion,  they  were  agreed  that  it  could  be  only  a  work  of 
the  imagination.  All  the  regeneration  at  which  we 
may  reasonably  expect  to  arrive  is  an  inclination  to 
)bey  the  dictates  of  reason.  He  who  follows  the  teach- 
ings of  his  own  intellect  cannot  go  astray,  for  this  is 
the  light  that  lighteth  every  man  that  cometh  into  the 
world.  The  Scriptures  give  a  high  coloring  to  religion, 
and  represent  it  as  necessary ;  but  those  writings  are 
not  as  reliable  as  the  innate  revelation  which  every  son 
of  Reason  enjoys. 

Existence  of  God.  With  this  view  of  religion  in 
general,  all  the  other  vital  doctrines  of  Christianity 
suffered  an  equal  depreciation.  The  existence  of  God 
is  conceded,  but  the  proof  is  impossible.     His  person- 


200  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

ality  cannot  be  affirmed  ;  it  is  confounded  with  the  soul 
of  the  world.  Of  course,  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity 
cannot  be  accepted ;  for  reason  sheds  no  light  suffi- 
ciently clear  to  establish  it.  A  high  dignitary  of  the 
church,  Cannabich,  wrote  a  book  in  positive  denial  of 
the  Trinity,  original  sin,  justification,  satisfaction  of 
Christ,  baptism,  and  the  Lord's  Supper.  As  for  the 
Trinity,  the  early  Christians  had  no  such  tenet,  and  it 
was  never  concocted  until  after  the  lapse  of  several 
centuries  of  the  Christian  era.  Both  philosophy  and 
nature  are  as  capable  of  establishing  the  evidence  of 
God's  existence  as  the  Scriptures  themselves.  The  idea 
we  have  of  God  is  due  to  prejudice  and  education. 
The  mass  of  the  nationalists  said,  with  Lichtenberg, 
that  instead  of  God  making  man  after  his  image,  man 
had  made  God  after  his  human  image. 

Doctrine  of  Inspiration.  The  Rationalists  were 
fond  of  reasoning  by  analogy,  and  they  used  that 
method  of  argument  freely  in  their  discussions  on  the 
inspiration  of  the  Scriptures.  God  never  pursues  the 
plan  of  operating  immediately  upon  nature.  His  laws 
are  the  mediate  measures  by  which  he  communicates 
with  man.  Gravitation  is  an  instrument  he  employs 
for  the  control  of  the  material  world.  Thus,  in  some 
way,  does  God  impress  upon  man's  mind  all  that  he 
wishes  to  reveal,  without  any  necessity  of  direct  inspire 
tion.  The  doctrine  was,  therefore,  rejected  because 
there  was  no  need  of  it,  and  from  this  step  it  was  easy 
to  assume  the  position  that  there  is  no  inspiration. 
This  the  Rationalists  did  assume.  "  Grant  inspiration," 
said  they,  "  and  you  bind  us  down  to  the  belief  that  all 
the  contents  of  the  Scriptures  are  true.  You  force  us 
to  believe  what  our  reason  does  not  comprehend.  The 
doctrine  of  inspiration  opens  the  floodgate  for  the  be 


tollner's  view  of  inspiration.  201 

lief  of  a  mass  of  mythical  stuff  which  we  will  no  more 
grant  to  be  historically  true  than  Niebuhr  will  admit 
the  validity  of  the  legends  of  early  Rome."  The  poets 
of  every  land  have  enjoyed  a  sort  of  rhapsody  when  in 
theii  highest  nights.  This  rhapsody  or  ecstasy  is  all 
that  these  idolaters  of  reason  will  concede.  Doeder 
lein's  views  of  inspiration  were  much  more  elevated 
than  those  held  by  many  of  his  confreres  ;  but  he  too 
speaks  of  poetical  excitement,  and  draws  a  line  of  dis- 
tinction between  the  inspired  and  uninspired  parts  of 
Scripture.  But  Ammon  represents  this  subject  better 
than  Doderlein.  It  was  his  opinion  that  the  idea  of  a 
mediate  divine  instruction  is  applicable  to  all  human 
knowledge.  He  rejects  the  notion  peculiar  to  revelation. 
Inspiration  cannot  for  a  moment  be  accepted  as  an  im- 
mediate divine  impression,  because  it  would  compromise 
the  supremacy  of  reason,  and  destroy  man's  intellectual 
and  moral  liberty.  The  diversity  of  style  perceptible 
in  the  writers  of  the  Scriptures  is  a  proof  that  they 
were  not  influenced  by  immediate  inspiration.  "These 
writers  themselves,"  say  the  Rationalists,  "  never  claimed 
such  extraordinary  functions  as  those  with  which  or- 
thodox believers  would  now  clothe  them." 

Tollner,  a  theological  professor  in  Frankfort-on-the- 
Oder,  wrote  very  fully  on  inspiration,  and  his  work 
was  held  in  great  repute  by  many  of  the  Rationalists 
who  were  inclined  to  supernaturalism.  He  held  that 
the  will,  the  matter,  the  words,  and  the  order  of  both 
the  matter  and  the  words,  might  be  objects  of  inspira- 
tion. But  there  are  several  degrees  of  inspiration. 
Some  books  were  written  without  inspiration  of  any 
kind,  and  were  only  confirmed  by  God.  In  the  Old 
Testament,  Moses  might  have  been  directed  to  a  choice 
of  subjects,  and  his  memory  might  have  been  strength- 


202  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

ened.  So  of  the  Psalms  and  Prophecies.  There  is  do 
such  thing  as  inspiration  of  the  historical  books.  It 
cannot  be  determined  what  degree  was  employed  in  the 
New  Testament.  In  the  Acts  there  was  nothing  more 
than  natural  inspiration.  Luke  and  Mark  were  ap 
proved  by  the  apostles,  hence  their  writings  may  be 
received.  Morus  held  that  inspiration  was  sometimes 
only  the  inducing  to  write ;  sometimes  an  admonition 
to  do  so ;  sometimes  revelation ;  and  sometimes  only  a 
guarding  from  error.1  Granting  the  Rationalistic  de- 
nial of  inspiration,  we  have  no  solid  ground  for  any 
portion  of  the  Bible.  We  find,  therefore,  that  after  this 
view  had  become  prevalent  the  popular  mind  attached 
no  importance  to  God's  revealed  will.  Interpolations 
were  imagined  at  every  point  of  difficulty.  Schrockh 
gives  a  sketch  of  the  deplorable  state  of  opinion  on  in 
spiration,  when  he  says,  "  Inspiration  was  given  up — 
interpolations  in  Scripture  were  believed  to  exist.  In 
the  oldest  and  partly  in  more  recent  history,  instead  of 
historical  facts  these  writers  saw  only  allegories,  myth, 
philosophical  principles,  and  national  history.  Where 
appearances  of  God  and  the  angels,  or  their  immediate 
agency,  are  related,  nothing  was  seen  but  Jewish  images 
or  dreams.  The  explanation  of  all  biblical  books  was 
pursued  on  new  principles.  The  Song  of  Solomon  was 
not  mystical.  The  Revelations  contained  no  prophecy 
of  the  fortunes  of  the  church." 

Bitter  indeed  must  have  been  the  emotions  of  the 
devout  Christian  on  seeing  the  departure  of  inspiration 
from  the  opinions  of  the  theological  leaders  of  that  day. 
Infinitely  more  exquisite  must  have  been  his  pain  than 
was  that  of  the  poet,  who,  sighing  for  the  haunted  and 
credulous  days  of  olden  time,  said  : 

'Rose,  State  of  Protestantism  in  Germany.     Notes  on  Ch.  iv. 


CREDIBILITY    OF   THE    SCRIPTURES.  203 

"  The  intelligible  forms  of  ancient  poets, 

The  fair  humanities  of  old  religions, 

The  power,  the  beauty,  and  the  majesty, 

That  had  their  haunts  in  dale  or  piny  mountain, 

Or  forest,  by  slow  stream,  or  pebbly  spring, 

Or  chasms  and  watery  depths :  all  these  have  vanished." 

Credibility  of  the  Scriptures.  Schenkel  affirms 
that  Rationalism  consists  in  giving  up  all  the  historical 
characteristics  of  Christianity  and  of  Christian  truths, 
and  in  the  reduction  of  religion  to  the  universal  con- 
clusions of  reason  and  morality.  The  accuracy  of  this 
definition  is  very  perceptible  when  we  consider  the 
wantonness  of  the  assaults  of  the  Rationalists  upon  the 
Scriptures  as  the  canon  of  faith  and  practice.  This 
period  was  marked  by  desperate  attempts  to  overthrow 
the  early  history  of  all  countries,  and  to  convict  his- 
torians of  stating  as  fact  what  was  only  vague  tradition. 
As  the  Bible  was  alleged  by  the  supernaturalists  to  be 
the  oldest  historic  record,  great  pains  were  taken  to  dis- 
sipate the  mist  from  its  accounts  of  supposed  verities. 
The  writers  of  the  Scriptures,  the  friends  of  Rationalism 
held,  were  only  men  like  ourselves.  They  had  our 
prejudices  and  as  great  infirmities  as  we  have.  They 
were  as  subject  to  deception  and  trickery,  and  as  full 
of  political  and  sectarian  rancor  as  partisans  in  these 
times.  All  through  the  Old  Testament  we  find  traces 
of  biased  judgment,  Jewish  national  pride,  sectional 
enmity,  sectarian  superstition,  and  rabbinical  ignorance. 
It  is  but  little  better  in  the  New  Testament,  for  the 
disciples  of  Christ  and  the  writers  of  the  gospels  were 
as  susceptible  of  error  and  bigotry  as  their  predecessors.1 

The  writers  of  the  Scriptures  were  utterly  destitute 
of  any  such  great  designs  as  the  orthodox  attribute  to 

1  Von  Ammon :  Biblische  Theologie. 
15 


204  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

them.  They  had  no  intention  of  writing  for  posterity, 
and  were  the  mere  chroniclers  of  what  they  had  heard 
from  others  and  seen  for  themselves.  The  Bible  is,  like 
the  essays  of  Seneca,  an  excellent  book  for  elevating 
the  people  by  its  moral  tone.  As  a  revelation  of  God's 
will  it  only  takes  its  place  beside  others  which  God 
had  previously  made,  and  has  been  making  in  a  nat- 
ural way,  ever  since.1  All  ages  and  nations  have  theii 
communications  of  knowledge,  and  the  setting  forth 
of  any  truth  in  a  clearer  light  is  a  revelation.2  There 
are  many  steps  necessary  for  the  education  of  the  race 
and  for  its  intellectual  and  moral  development.  The 
Scriptures  are  a  very  good  aid  to  such  a  great  consum- 
mation.3 But  they  are  full  of  errors,  which  we  must 
leave  for  the  supremacy  of  pure  Reason  to  dissipate 
forever.4 

We  cannot  forbear  to  give  Wegscheider's  testimony 
on  the  scanty  measure  of  Scriptural  credibility  and  au- 
thority in  his  own  words.  "  But  whatever  narrations," 
he  says,  "  especially  accommodated  to  a  certain  age  and 
relating  miracles  and  mysteries,  are  united  with  the 
history  and  subject-matter  of  revelation  of  this  kind, 
these  ought  to  be  referred  to  the  natural  sources  and 
true  nature  of  human  knowledge.  By  how  much  the 
more  clearly  the  author  of  the  Christian  religion,  not 
without  the  help  of  Deity,  exhibited  to  men  the  ideas 
of  reason  imbued  with  true  religion,  so  as  to  represent, 
as  it  were,  a  reflection  of  the  divine  reason,  or  the  divine 
spirit,  by  so  much  the  more  diligently  ought  man  to  strive 
to  approach  as  nearly  as  possible  to  form  that  archetype 
in  the  mind,  and  to  study  to  imitate  it  in  life  and  man- 

1  Daub.  *  Herder.  '  Leasing :  MenschengeschleehU  Rosenmuller : 
Stufenfolge  der  Qottlichen  Offenbarungen.  *  Wegscheider :  Imtitutione* 
Dogmaticce. 


WEGSCHEIDEB    ON    INSPIRATION.  205 

ners  to  the  utmost  of  his  ability.  Behold  here  the  in- 
timate and  eternal  union  and  agreement  of  Christianity 
with  Rationalism.  .  .  .  The  various  modes  of  su- 
pernatural revelation  mentioned  in  many  places  of  the 
sacred  books,  are  to  be  referred  altogether  to  the  no- 
tions and  mythical  narrations  of  every  civilized  people  ; 
and  this  following  the  suggestion  of  the  Holy  Scripture 
itself,  and  therefore  to  be  attributed,  as  any  events  in  the 
nature  of  things,  to  the  laws  of  nature  known  to  us 
As  to  theophanies,  the  sight  of  the  infinite  Deity  is  ex- 
pressly denied:  John  i.  18 — 1  John  iv.  12 — 1  Tim.  vi. 
16.  Angel ophanies,  which  the  Jews  of  a  later  date 
substituted  for  the  appearances  of  God  himself,  like  the 
narrations  of  the  appearances  of  demons  found  amongst 
many  nations,  are  plainly  destitute  of  certain  historic 
proofs ;  and  the  names,  species,  and  commissions  attrib- 
uted to  angels  in  the  sacred  books,  plainly  betray  their 
Jewish  origin.  The  business  transacted  by  angels  on 
earth  is  little  worthy  of  such  ministers.  .  .  .  The 
persuasion  concerning  the  truth  of  that  supernatural 
revelation,  which  rests  on  the  testimony  of  the  sacred 
volume  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments,  like  every 
opinion  of  the  kind,  labors  under  what  is  commonly 
called  a  petitio  principii? 

The  Bible  is,  in  fact,  of  no  more  authority  and  en- 
titled to  no  further  credence  than  any  other  book.  It 
is  not  worth  more,  as  an  historical  record,  than  an  old 
chronicle  of  Indian,  Greek,  or  Bom  an  legends.1  The 
evangelists  did  not  get  their  accounts  of  the  doings  of 
Christ  from  observation,  but  from  a  primitive  document 
written  in  the  Aramaic  language.  The  gospels  were 
not  intentional  deceptions ;  but  that  they  are  as  well 
the  work  of  error  as  of  wisdom,  no  candid  interpreter 

1  Eichhorn :  Einleituiw 


206  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

can  deny.  The  life  of  Christ  which  they  contain  is  but 
an  innocent  supplement  to  the  Metamorphoses  of  Ovid.1 
Tittmann  went  so  far  as  to  affirm  that  the  Scripture 
writers  were  so  ignorant  that  they  could  not  represent 
things  as  they  really  happened.  Of  course  he  excludes 
their  capacity  for  inspiration. 

Doctrine  of  the  Fall  of  Man.  While  some  Ra- 
tionalistic writers  conceded  that  Moses  was  the  authoi 
of  the  whole  or  parts  of  the  Pentateuch,  his  version  of 
the  origin  of  sin  was  universally  rejected.  The  tempta- 
tion by  the  serpent  was,  with  them,  one  of  the  most  im 
probable  myths  ever  drawn  up  from  the  earliest  tradi 
tions  of  nations.  Whether  Moses  wrote  much  or  little 
of  the  books  attributed  to  him,  his  sources  of  knowl- 
edge were  monuments  and  tales  which  he  saw  and 
heard  about  him.  It  is  likely  that  he  derived  his  idea 
of  the  fall  of  man  from  some  hieroglyphic  representation 
which  he  happened  somewhere  to  see.  As  for  the  en- 
trance of  the  serpent  into  Paradise,  it  is  just  as  improb- 
able as  the  rabbinical  notion  that  the  serpent  of  Eden 
had  many  feet.  In  the  opinion  of  some,  the  whole  nar- 
rative is  only  an  allegory,  or  "  a  poetical  description  of 
the  transition  of  man  from  a  more  brutish  creature  into 
humanity,  from  the  baby-wagon  of  instinct  into  the 
government  of  reason,  from  the  guardianship  of  nature 
into  the  condition  of  freedom."  2  Kindred  to  this  theory 
is  Amnion's  ;  that  at  first  man  obeyed  instinct  only,  and 
that  his  desire  to  eat  the  forbidden  fruit  was  the  long- 
ing of  his  mind  to  understand  truth.  But  the  great 
injury  which  these  men  thought  they  had  visited  on 
this  doctrine  was  their  assumption  that  man  had  not 
fallen,  and  that  instead  of  being  worse  than  he  once 
was,  he  is  every  year  growing  purer  and  holier  than  at 

1  Paulas :  Kritische  Commentar  uber  das  Xeue  Testament.     2  Kant. 


MIRACLES.  207 

any  previous  stage  of  his  history.  This  was  flattering 
to  their  inflated  pride,  and  their  wish  became  father  to 
their  creed.  With  Eichhorn,  the  narrative  of  the  fall 
was  only  a  description  of  Adam's  thoughts. 

Miracles.  It  was  no  surprise  to  the  wise  disciples 
;>f  Reason  that  there  should  be  found  numerous  records 
of  miracles  in  the  Bible.  It  was  just  what  might  be 
expected  from  such  writers  in  that  gray  morning  of  an- 
tiquity. The  first  chroniclers  seized  upon  tradition ; 
and  their  successors,  seeing  how  well  their  fathers  had 
succeeded,  merely  imitated  them  by  catching  up  new 
ones,  or  enlarging  upon  the  old  account.  By  a  sort  of 
infection,  therefore,  we  find  what  purports  to  be  a  reve- 
lation. Whatever  harmony  there  is,  was  the  result  of 
an  aim  which  was  not  lost  sight  of  for  a  moment.  Na- 
ture was  the  first  teacher;  and  though  she  was  compe- 
tent, we  have  been  poor  disciples.  She  is  instructing  us 
all  the  time,  though  we  have  listened  less  to  her  than  to 
the  other  auditors  who  sit  about  us.  Lichtenberg  says 
in  poetical  language,  that  "  When  man  considers  Nature 
the  teacher,  and  poor  men  the  pupils,  we  listen  to  a  lec- 
ture and  we  have  the  principles  and  the  knowledge  to 
understand  it.  But  we  listen  far  more  to  the  applause 
of  our  fellow-students  than  to  the  discourse  of  the 
teacher.  We  interlard  the  lecture  by  speeches  to  the 
one  who  sits  next  us ;  we  supply  what  has  been  poorly 
heard  by  us;  and  enlarge  it  by  our  own  mistakes  of  or- 
thography and  sentiment." 

No  branch  of  Scriptural  faith  attracted  more  of  the 
wrath  and  irony  of  the  Rationalists  than  miracles. 
They  saw  how  important  their  service  was  to  the  au- 
thority of  the  Bible,  and  therefore  bent  all  their  ener- 
gies for  their  overthrow.  They  denied  their  possibility 
in  the  strongest  terms,  averring  that  they  degrade  the 


208  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

character  of  God,  and  violate  that  noble  nature  of  the 
human  mind,  which  is  necessarily  bound  to  the  most 
certain  laws  of  experience,  and  can  discern  no  positive 
marks  of  supernatural  agency.1  The  miracles  of  the 
New  Testament  receive  no  better  treatment  than  those 
of  the  Old.  In  every  case  they  have  no  foundation  in 
history.  Various  reasons  are  assigned  for  their  presence 
in  the  Bible ;  in  some  cases  they  are  only  legends  of 
mythologic  days;  in  others,  the  pure  fancy  of  the 
writer ;  and  in  others,  hyperbolical  descriptions  of  natu- 
ral occurrences.  Thus,  while  there  was  a  diversity  of 
opinion  concerning  the  narratives,  there  was  perfect 
union  as  to  the  purely  natural  character  of  the  events. 

We  may  particularize,  in  order  to  present  more 
clearly  the  Rationalistic  method  of  interpreting  mira- 
cles. When  Korah,  Dathan  and  Abiram,  with  their  fel- 
low-unfortunates, were  swallowed  up,  they  only  suf- 
fered what  many  others  have  done  since, — destruction 
by  a  natural  earthquake.  This  was  the  opinion  of 
Michaelis.  Others,  more  ingenious,  thought  that  Moses 
had  taken  care  to  undermine  privately  the  whole 
of  the  ground  on  which  the  tents  of  the  sinners 
were  ;  and,  therefore,  it  was  not  surprising,  either  that 
they  fell  into  the  cavity,  or  that  Moses  should  know 
this  would  be  their  fate.  Eichhorn  held  that  the  three 
offenders,  with  their  property,  were  burned  by  the 
order  of  Moses.  Dinter  explained  Jacob's  struggle 
with  an  angel  by  relating  a  recent  dream.  His  broth- 
er having  lately  died,  Dinter  dreamed  soon  after 
that  a  man,  with  a  little  peep-show,  presented  to  his 
view  all  sorts  of  pictures,  and  at  length  showed  him 
his  dead  brother.  The  vision  said,  "To  show  you 
that  I  am  really   your  brother,    I   will  print   a   blue 

1  Wegscheider :  Institutiones  Dogmatica. 


PAULUS    ON   THE   MIEACLES    OF   CHRIST.  209 

mark  on  your  finger."  The  dreamer  awoke  and 
found  not  a  blue  mark  but  a  pain  which  lasted 
some  days.  This  profound  exegete  then  asks,  "  Could 
not  something  similar  have  happened  in  Jacob's  case  ? 
Even  the  less  lively  occidentalist  sometimes  relates  as 
real  what  only  happened  in  his  mind.  Why  should 
we  be  surprised  at  a  similar  occurrence  in  the  warmer 
fancy  of  the  Eastern  man  ?  " 

But  of  all  the  critics  of  miracles  we  must  give  the 
palm  to  Paulus.      Let  us  hear   how   he    accounts    for 
the  tribute-money  in  the  mouth  of  the  fish.     "  What 
sort  of  a  miracle,"  he  asks,  "  is  that  we  find   here  ?     I 
will  not   say    a  miracle  of   about   sixteen    or   twenty 
groschen,  for  the  greatness  of  the  value  does  not  make 
the  greatness  of  the  miracle.     But  it  may  be  observed, 
that,    as  Jesus  generally  received  support  from  many 
persons,  in   the   same  way  as   the    Rabbis    frequently 
lived  from  such  donations ;    as  so  many  pious  women 
provided  for  the  wants  of  Jesus ;  and  as  the  claim  did 
not  occur   at    any  remote    place,  but    at    Capernaum, 
where  Christ  had  friends  ;    a  miracle  for  about  a  thaler 
would  certainly  have  been  superfluous.     But  it  would 
not  only  have  been  superfluous  and  paltry, — it  would 
have  taught  this   principle ;  that  Peter,  even  when  he 
could  have  remedied  his  necessities  easily  in  other  ways, 
rnicht  and  ousrht  to  reckon  on  a  miraculous  interference 
of  the  Deity, — a  notion  which  would  entirely  contradict 
the  fundamental  principle  of  Jesus,  or  the  interference 
of  the  Deity.     There  is  nothing  of  a  miraculous  ap- 
pearance in  this  narrative,  nor  was  there  to  Peter  him- 
self.    Had  there  been,  the  fiery  Peter  would  not  have 
been  cold-blooded  at  such  a  miracle,  but  would  have  ex- 
pressed himself  as  in  Luke  v.  8.     There  is  nothing  more 
mear*-  ^we  than  that  Christ  designed  to  give  a  moral 


210  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

lesson  ;  namely,  that  we  should  not  give  offence  to  our 
brethren,  if  we  can.  avoid  it  by  trifling  circumstances. 
Hence,  Christ  said  to  him  in  substance,  '  Though  there 
is  no  real  occasion  for  us  to  pay  the  tribute,  yet  as  we 
may  be  reckoned  enemies  of  the  temple,  and  may  not 
be  attended  to  when  we  wish  to  teach  what  is  good, 
why  should  not  you,  who  are  a  fisherman,  and  can  easily 
do  it,  go  and  get  enough  to  pay  the  demand  ?  Go  then 
to  the  sea,  cast  your  hook  and  take  up  the  first  and  best- 
fish.  Peter  must,  therefore,  have  caught  either  so  manj 
fish  as  would  be  worth  a  stater  at  Capernaum,  or  one  large 
and  fine  enough  to  have  been  valued  at  that  sum.  The 
opening  of  the  fish's  mouth  might  have  different  objects, 
which  must  be  fixed  by  the  context.  Certainly,  if  it 
hang  long,  it  will  be  less  salable.  Therefore  the 
sooner  it  is  taken  to  market,  the  more  probable  will  be 
a  good  price  for  it." 

Paulus  and  Amnion  coincide  in  the  following  inter- 
pretation of  one  of  the  miracles  of  the  loaves  and 
fishes.  There  were  always  large  caravans  traveling 
near  the  time  of  the  feasts,  and  they  carried  a  plenty  of 
meat  and  drinks  on  camels  and  in  baskets.  Now  it  is 
not  according  to  Eastern  hospitality  to  see  your  friends 
near  you  when  you  are  eating,  without  asking  them 
to  join  you.  All  that  Jesus  meant  by  saying  they 
were  without  food  was,  that  they  had  not  a  regular 
meal ;  and  that  therefore  he  collected  them,  arranged 
them  in  parties,  and  set  those  who  had  food  the  example 
of  giving  to  those  who  had  none,  by  doing  so  himself 
with  the  small  portion  which  he  had.  As  long  as  eating 
was  going  on,  Christ  made  the  twelve  go  about  with 
their  baskets  and  give  what  they  had  to  all  who  wished 
it.  The  baskets  were  not  entirely  emptied,  nor  was  any 
one  left  hungry ;  otherwise  the  needy  would  have  ap- 


MIKACLES    AND   PEOPHECY.  211 

plied  to  the  stock  of  the  Apostles.  Jesus,  pleased  to 
have  done  so  much  with  so  little,  desired  them  to  collect 
what  there  was  in  the  different  baskets  into  one. 

Our  wise  critic,  the  daring  Paulus,  finds  as  little 
difficulty  in  explaining  away  the  miracle  of  Christ  walk- 
ing on  the  sea.  When  Christ  saw  that  the  wind  was 
contrary,  he  did  not  wish  to  sustain  the  inconvenience  of 
such  a  voyage  ;  but  walked  along  the  shore  and  resolved 
to  pass  the  disciples,  as  the  wind  was  against  them.  From 
the  state  of  the  weather  they  coasted  slowly  along, 
and  when  they  saw  him  walking  on  the  land  they  were 
frightened.  On  their  calling  out,  Christ  desired  Peter, 
who  was  a  good  swimmer,  to  swim  to  the  shore  and  as- 
certain that  it  was  he.  Peter  ran  around  to  the  proper 
side  of  the  ship  and  jumped  into  the  sea.  When  he 
was  frightened  by  the  violence  of  the  waves,  Christ 
who  was  standing  on  the  shore,  put  out  his  hand  and 
caught  him.    The  boat  put  to  land  and  they  both  got  in  ! 

Such  was  the  common  method  of  explaining  miracles. 
The  Rationalists  were  so  opposed  to  the  idea  of  the  super- 
natural, that  each  was  accounted  for  in  some  other  than 
the  Scriptural  way.  Many  volumes  were  written  on 
this  subject  alone,  until  the  people  became  thoroughly 
imbued  with  the  opinion  that  the  Scriptures  are  nothing 
more  than  a  well-intended  and  exhaustive  Jewish  my- 
thology. It  became  a  mark  of  superstition  to  credit  a 
miraculous  event,  and  the  few  who  still  adhered  to  thi9 
pillar  of  the  Christian  faith  found  themselves  pitied  by 
the  learned  and  derided  by  their  equals. 

Prophecy.  The  adventurous  men  who  could  deal 
thus  with  miracles  would  not  be  supposed  to  be  more 
lenient  to  the  prophecies  of  the  Scriptures.  We,  there- 
fore, observe  the  same  skeptical  rejection  of  the  proph- 
ets.    We  have  not  dwelt  at  length  upon   the  particular 


212  HISTOBY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

books  which  received  their  thrusts,  for  this  would  be 
quite  too  lengthy  a  task  for  the  present  volume.  It  is 
probable,  however,  that  there  is  not  a  book  of  Scrip- 
ture, or  even  a  chapter,  which  these  men  would  have 
remain  just  as  we  find  it  in  the  canon.  "  Something  must 
bo  done  with  it,"  they  argued,  "  no  matter  what  it  is, 
It  is  older  or  later  than  we  have  been  accustomed  to 
think.  It  was,  of  course,  written  by  some  one  else  than 
the  accredited  author." 

A  large  share  of  these  criticisms  centered  on  the 
works  of  the  prophets,  for  it  was  one  of  the  most  per- 
sistent efforts  of  Rationalism  to  destroy  popular  faith  in 
them.  Ammon  discoursed  boldly  against  them  and  at- 
tempted to  convert  every  prophetic  expression  into  a 
natural  remark.  He  held  that  Christ  himself  directly 
renounced  the  power  to  prophesy,  Mat.  xxiv.  36  ;  Acts 
i.  7;  and  that  there  are  no  prophecies  of  his  in  the  New 
Testament.  Prophecies  are  recorded  in  the  Bible  as 
uttered  by  men  of  doubtful  character.  Many  of  them 
are  obscure,  and  were  never  fulfilled.  Others  were 
made  after  the  events,  and  all  were  reckoned  imperfect 
by  the  Apostles.  These  accusations  apply  to  all  the 
prophecies  of  the  Old  and  New  Testaments.  The  ar- 
gument for  them  needs  whatever  excuse  it  can  find,  in 
the  delirium  of  the  prophets  who  were  transported  out 
of  their  sobriety,  in  the  double  sense  in  which  they  are 
quoted  in  the  New  Testament,  or  in  the  remarkable  va- 
riety of  interpretation.  In  fact,  there  is  a  moral  ob- 
jection to  them,  to  say  nothing  of  their  historical  charac- 
ter. They  would  favor  fatalism,  take  away  human  free- 
dom, and  be  irreconcilable  with  the  Divine  perfection. 
What  Christ  said  concerning  the  destruction  of  Jerusa- 
lem is  not  a  prophecy,  because  not  stated  with  sufficient 
clearness.      Jesus  followed  the  style  of  interpretation 


THE   PROPHETS.  213 

found  in  the  Talmudic  and  Rabbinical  writings,  and 
transferred  to  himself  many  things  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, which  really  referred  to  future  changes  in  the 
state  of  the  Jews.  He  used  the  Jewish  ideas  of  a 
Messiah  to  further  his  own  notions  of  founding  a  spirit- 
ual kingdom.  The  prophecies  in  the  Old  Testament 
merely  give  a  poetical  dress  to  affairs  occurring  in  the 
prophet's  or  the  poet's  life  time.1  Even  the  prophets 
made  but  little  if  any  claim  to  the  great  gift  ascribed 
to  them.  They  were  good  politicians  who  had  made  a 
study  of  their  subject ;  and,  from  the  mere  force  of  nat- 
ural shrewdness  and  long  experience,  could  see  coming 
events.  Paulus  argued  at  length  against  Christ's  proph- 
ecy of  his  own  resurrection.  His  first  proof  is  that  the 
apostles  did  not  so  understand  him,  as  is  clear  from  the 
women  seeking  to  embalm  him  ;  and  from  the  apostles 
not  believing  at  first  the  story  of  his  resurrection.  Then 
Christ  had  no  notion  of  returning  shortly.  He  would 
not  have  thought  it  necessary  to  cheer  his  disciples  as  he 
did  before  his  death  if  he  could  have  prophesied  that 
in  three  days  he  should  join  them  again.  All  the  prom- 
ises of  meeting  again  refer  to  his  joining  them  in  a  fu- 
ture life.  Wegsch eider  adds  that  Christ,  though  he  re- 
proaches his  disciples  with  their  want  of  faith,  doea  not 
allude  to  their  distrust  of  any  prophecy  of  his ;  and 
that  the  phrase  three  days  is  often  used  of  wha^  will 
soon  happen.  Scherer,  a  clergyman  of  Hesse-Darmstadt, 
represented  the  prophets  of  the  Old  Testament  as 
so  many  Indian  jugglers,  who  made  use  of  tho  pre- 
tended inspiration  of  Moses  and  of  the  revelations  of 
the  prophets  to  deceive  the  people.  He  treated  +hose 
who  still  have  any  regard  for  the  prophecies  of  Ihs  New 
Testament  as  enthusiasts  and  simpletons  ;  called  a']  the 

1  Eichhorn  :  Die  Hebr'aischen  Propheten. 


214  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

predictions  respecting  the  person  of  the  Messiah,  non- 
sense ;  accused  the  prophets  of  being  cunning  deceivers ; 
and  said  that  the  belief  of  those  prophets  has  preserved 
incredulity  on  the  earth. 

The  Person  of  Christ.  The  historical  method  of 
interpretation  was  applied  by  the  disciples  of  Reason 
to  the  Gospel  narratives  of  the  character  and  atonement 
of  Christ.  The  various  circumstances  surrounding  the 
writers,  the  prejudices  probably  actuating  them,  the  cus- 
toms they  witnessed,  and  their  ignorance  and  consequent 
impressibility  by  a  stronger  mind,  were  all  taken  into 
the  account.  The  Rationalists,  therefore,  place  Christ 
before  us  as  we  would  naturally  expect  him  to  appear 
after  taking  everything  into  consideration.  They  do 
not  show  him  to  us  as  he  is,  but  as  the  nature  of  the  case 
would  lead  us  to  expect  him  to  be.  There  were  many 
who  charged  him  with  unworthy  motives  and  national 
prejudices.  Reimarus  accused  him  of  rebellious,  ambi- 
tious, and  political  views.  "Afterward,"  saysStiiudlin, 
"came  out  writings  enough  in  Germany  in  which  Christ 
was  said  to  have  performed  his  miracles  by  secret  arts 
or  by  delusions.  All  proofs  of  the  truth  and  divinity 
of  his  religion  were  taken  away.  He  was  exhibited 
either  as  a  deceiver  or  self-deceiving  enthusiast ;  and 
every  possible  objection  to  Christian  morality  as  well 
as  to  the  form  of  Christian  worship  was  violently 
urged.  Among  the  writers  of  these  works  were  even 
theologians  and  preachers  !  What  could  be  the  conse- 
quence, except  that  they  who  still  held  somewhat  to 
Christianity  should  set  it  forth  as  pure  Rationalism,  and 
that  others  should  endeavor  to  extinguish  it,  and  to  in- 
troduce a  pure  religion  of  reason  quite  independent  of 
Christianity  and  separated  from  it." 

An    anonymous    publication    appeared    in     1825. 


PERSON    OF    CHEIST.  215 

entitled  Vindicice  Sacrce  Novi  Testamenti  Scriptua- 
rum,  in  which  Christ  was  declared  to  have  deceived 
himself!  Thereupon  the  Christians  were  obliged  to 
elevate  their  founder's  mean  condition  by  wonderful 
stories.  The  first  myth  is  concerning  John  the 
Baptist.  Then  follow  the  wonderful  stories  of  Christ's 
birth,  the  advent  of  the  wise  men,  the  baptism, 
temptation,  death,  resurrection  and  ascension  of  Christ. 
There  are  doubts  and  difficulties  connected  with  the 
resurrection,  and  though  the  apostles  constantly  as- 
sert its  truth,  the  probable  story  is  that  the  follow- 
ers of  Jesus,  enraged  at  his  death,  gave  it  out  that, 
being  taken  from  the  power  of  the  wicked,  he  lived 
with  God  and  enjoyed  the  reward  of  his  virtue. 
They  represented  the  life  of  their  master  to  themselves 
and  others  in  the  most  glowing  colors,  and  so  by  de- 
grees, said  that  he  was  still  living,  raised  from  the  dead, 
and  rewarded.  Then  all  these  things  were  told  and  be- 
lieved, and  it  was  not  easy  to  contradict  them  or  even 
examine  their  value. 

Paulus  affirmed  that  Christ  did  not  really  die 
but  suffered  a  fainting  fit.  Bahrdt  conjectured  that 
he  retreated  after  his  supposed  death  to  some  place 
known  only  to  his  disciples.  According  to  Henke, 
Christ  was  a  remarkable  teacher,  distinguished  and 
instructed  by  God.  Inspiration  was  what  Cicero 
ascribes  to  the  poets ;  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  came 
from  Platonism ;  the  name  "  Son  of  God  "  is  metaphori- 
cal, and  describes  not  the  nature  but  the  qualities  of 
Christ ;  and  personality  is  ascribed  to  the  Holy  Ghost 
through  a  prosopopoeia  not  uncommon  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment. The  chief  service  of  Christ  was  his  doctrine. 
As  a  Divine  Messenger  it  was  his  business  to  bring  for- 
ward new  and  pure  religion  adapted  to  the  wants  of  all 


216  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

mankind,  and  to  give  an  example  of  it.  His  death  was 
necessary  to  prove  his  confidence  in  his  own  doctrines, 
and  to  present  an  illustration  of  perfected  virtue. 
Wegscheider  took  the  position  that  Christ  was  one  of 
those  characters  raised  up  by  God  at  various  periods  of 
history  to  repress  vice  and  encourage  virtue.  All  no- 
tions of  his  glorification,  however,  are  groundless,  and 
the  atonement  is  a  mere  speculation  of  the  orthodox. 

One  of  the  most  popular  and  direct  of  all  the  wri- 
ters on  the  opinions  of  the  Rationalists  was  Rohr,  the 
author  of  the  Briefe  ube?'  den  Rationalismus.  He 
dwells  at  length  upon  nearly  all  the  opinions  we 
have  mentioned,  but  his  portrait  of  Christ  demands 
more  than  a  passing  notice.  He  assumes  a  position,  not 
very  lofty,  it  is  true,  but  yet  much  more  favorable  than 
some  of  the  authorities  to  which  we  have  referred- 
Christ  had  a  great  mission,  and  he  felt  that  a  heavy 
burden  was  upon  him.  Still  he  was  only  a  great  ge- 
nius, the  blossom  of  his  age  and  generation,  and  unsur- 
passed in  wisdom  by  any  one  before  or  after  him.  His 
origin,  culture,  deeds  and  experience,  are  yet  veiled, 
and  the  accounts  we  have  of  him  are  so  distorted  by 
rhapsody  that  we  cannot  reach  a  clear  conception  of 
him.  He  had  a  rare  acquaintance  with  mankind,  and 
studied  the  Old  Testament  carefully.  He  possessed  a 
large  measure  of  tact,  imagination,  judgment,  wisdom, 
and  power.  His  wisdom  was  the  product  of  unbiased 
reason,  a  sound  heart,  and  freedom  from  scholastic  preju- 
dices. He  knew  how  to  seize  upon  the  best  means  fui 
the  attainment  of  his  human  purposes.  He  embraced  in 
his  plan  a  universal  religion,  and  to  this  he  made  all 
things  minister.  All  his  doctrines  were  borrowed  from 
the  Old  Testament ;  and  the  most  admirable  can  be 
found  as  far  back  as  the  time  of  Moses.     He  performed 


PERSON    OF    CHRIST.  217 

no  miracles ;  but  they  seemed  miracles  to  the  eye-wit- 
nesses. He  uttered  no  real  prophecies,  but  his  mind 
was  so  full  of  the  future  that  some  of  his  predictions 
came  to  pass  because  of  the  natural  foresight  possessed 
by  him.  His  cures  are  all  attributable  to  his  skill  as  a 
physician,  for  every  Jew  of  that  day  had  some  medical 
knowledge.  His  apostles  propagated  Christianity  be- 
cause of  the  influence  wrought  upon  them  by  their  mas- 
ter. Fortunately  for  his  fame,  Paul  published  him  far 
and  wide.  Had  it  not  been  for  that  apostle,  Christianity 
would  never  have  gone  further  than  Palestine.  There 
is  nothing  more  remarkable  in  the  spread  of  this  re- 
ligion than  in  that  of  Mohammedanism,  which  has 
made  such  great  inroads  upon  Arabia,  Egypt,  Northern 
Africa,  and  Spain.  Rohr,  however,  reaches  the  climax 
of  skeptical  praise  when  he  says  of  Christ  that  he  was 
a  "  Rationalist  of  pure,  clear,  sound  reason ;  free  from 
prejudice,  of  ready  perceptions,  great  love  of  truth,  and 
warm  sympathies, — an  exalted  picture  of  intellectual  and 
moral  greatness.     Who  would  not  bow  before  thee  ? " 

The  Rationalists  made  each  act  of  Christ  the  sub- 
ject of  extended  remark.  Whenever  they  came  to  a 
serious  difficulty  they  boldly  attempted  its  solution  by 
a  few  dashes  of  their  unscrupulous  pen.  We  may 
take  the  temptation  in  the  wilderness  as  an  example. 
One  writer  says  that  Christ,  after  his  baptism,  went 
into  the  wilderness  full  of  the  conviction  that  he  had 
been  called  to  a  great  work.  He  was  hungry  ;  and  the 
thought  came  to  him  whether  or  not  he  was  able  to 
change  the  stones  into  bread.  Then  the  conviction  arose 
that  his  authority  was  not  great  enough  to  enchain  the 
affections  of  the  people.  He  wondered  if  God  would 
not  support  him  if  he  fell ;  but  Reason  answered,  "  God 
will  not  sustain  you  if  you  disobey  the  laws  of  nature." 


218  HISTORY   OF    RATIONALISM. 

Then,  standing  on  the  top  of  a  mountain,  he  conceived 
the  idea  of  possessing  the  surrounding  lands,  and  of 
placing  himself  at  the  head  of  the  people  to  over- 
throw the  Roman  power.  The  whole  affair  was  a 
mere  individual  conflict. 

From  what  we  have  now  said,  the  opinions  of  the 
Rationalists  on  all  points  of  Christian  doctrine  become 
apparent.  The  sacraments  are  only  symbols  of  an  in- 
visible truth.  Baptism  is  merely  a  sign  of  the  purity 
with  which  a  Christian  ought  to  live.  The  Lord's  Sup- 
per is  but  a  memorial  of  the  death  of  Jesus,  and  unites 
us  with  him  only  morally.  The  church  is  a  human  in- 
stitution, whose  teachings  may  be  very  distinct  from  the 
will  of  God.  It  gives  therefore  only  relative  aid.  The 
future  judgment  is  only  a  Rabbinical  vision.  Every 
one  receives  retribution  for  his  faults  in  this  life ;  and 
there  is  no  eternity  save  that  of  God,  in  whom  all  beings 
are  absorbed.1 

By  this  barren  creed  all  foundation  for  a  holy  life 
was  taken  away.  The  people,  believing  such  absurdi- 
ties, were  transported  from  a  period  which  is  declared 
by  the  word  of  God  to  be  blessed  by  the  "  dispensation 
of  the  Spirit "  to  a  cold  age  in  which  the  excellence  of 
the  intellect  was  measured  by  the  ingenuity  of  its 
thrusts  at  the  Scriptures,  and  in  which  the  highest  piety 
was  the  strictest  obedience  to  the  dictates  of  natural 
reason.  The  inspired  advice  given  to  the  seekers  of  wis- 
dom  was  travestied  and  made  to  read,  "  If  any  of  you 
lack  wisdom,  let  him  ask  of  Reason  that  giveth  to  all 
men  liberally  and  upbraideth  not ;  and  it  shall  be  given 
him."  The  Christian  of  that  day  had  but  little  to 
minister  to  his  spiritual  growth.      All  the  endeared  in- 

1  Von  Ammon.      Quoted  from  his   Magazine  in  Saintes'  Histcire  dv 
Rationalisme. 


RATIONALISM   PURELY   NEGATIVE.  219 

stitutions  of  his  church  were  palsied  by  the  strong  arm 
of  the  Rationalists,  who  had  nothing  to  put  in  their 
place.  Their  time  was  spent  in  destruction.  They 
would  pull  all  things  down  and  erect  nothing  positive 
and  useful.  The  doctrines  which  they  professed  to  be 
lieve  were  mere  negatives, — the  sheer  denial  of  some 
thing  already  in  existence. 

16 


CHAPTER    IX. 

RENOVATION  INAUGURATED   BY   SOHLEIERMAOHER. 

The  commencement  of  the  nineteenth  century  found 
the  German  people  in  a  state  of  almost  hopeless  de- 
pression. They  saw  their  territory  laid  waste  by  the 
victorious  Napoleon,  and  their  thrones  occupied  by  ru- 
lers of  Gallic  or  Italian  preferences.  They  had  striven 
very  sluggishly  to  stem  the  current  of  national  subjec- 
tion and  humiliation.  The  star  of  France  being  in  the 
ascendant,  the  Rhine  was  no  longer  their  friendly  ally 
and  western  limit.  No  stage  in  the  history  of  a  people 
is  more  gloomy  and  calls  more  loudly  for  sympathy  than 
when  national  prestige  is  gone,  and  dignities  usurped  by 
foreign  conquerors.  Though  the  apathy  of  despair  is  a 
theme  more  becoming  the  poet  than  the  historian,  we 
find  a  vivid  description  of  the  sadness  and  desolation 
produced  by  the  French  domination  given  by  one  who 
deeply  felt  the  disgrace  of  his  country.  This  writer 
says : 

"  The  Divine  Nemesis  now  stretched  forth  her  hand 
against  devoted  Germany,  and  chastened  her  rulers  and 
her  people  for  the  sins  and  transgressions  of  many 
generations.  Like  those  wild  sons  of  the  desert,  whom 
in  the  seventh  century,  heaven  let  loose  to  punish  the 


FRENCH    DOMINATION.  221 

degenerate  Christians  of  the  East,  the  new  Islamite 
hordes  of  revolutionary  France  were  permitted  by  Di- 
vine Providence  to  spread  through  Germany,  as  through 
almost  every  country  in  Europe,  terror  and  desolation. 

"  What  shall  I  say  of  the  endless  evils  that  accompa- 
nied and  followed  the  march  of  her  armies,  the  desolation 
of  provinces,  the  plunder  of  cities,  the  spoliation  of  church 
property,  the  desecration  of  altars,  the  proscription  of 
the  virtuous,  the  exaltation  of  the  unworthy  members 
of  society,  the  horrid  mummeries  of  irreligion  practised 
in  many  of  the  conquered  cities,  the  degradation  of  life 
and  the  profanation  of  death.  Such  were  the  calamities 
that  marked  the  course  of  these  devastating  hosts.  And 
yet  the  evils  inflicted  by  Jacobin  France  were  less  intense 
and  less  permanent  than  those  exercised  by  her  legisla- 
tion. In  politics  the  expulsion  of  the  ecclesiastical  elec- 
tors, who,  though  they  had  sometimes  given  in  to  the  false 
spirit  of  the  age,  had  ever  been  the  mildest  and  most 
benevolent  of  rulers  ;  the  proscription  of  a  nobility  that 
had  ever  lived  in  the  kindliest  relations  with  its  ten- 
antry ;  and  on  the  ruins  of  old  aristocratic  and  muni- 
cipal  institutions  that  had  long  guarded  and  sustained 
popular  freedom,  a  coarse,  leveling  tyranny,  sometimes 
democratic,  sometimes  imperial,  established ;  in  the 
church  the  oppression  of  the  priesthood,  a  heartless  reli- 
gious indifferentism,  undignified  even  by  attempts  at 
philosophic  speculation,  propagated  and  encouraged ;  and 
through  the  poisoned  channels  of  education  the  taint  of 
infidelity  transmitted  to  generations  yet  unborn.  Such 
were  the  evils  that  followed  the  establishment  of  the 
French  domination  in  the  conquered  provinces  of 
Germany.  Doubtless,  through  the  all- wise  dispensa- 
tions of  that  Providence  who  bringeth  good  out  of  evil, 
this  fearful  revolution  has  partly  become,  and  will  yet 


222  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

further  become,  the  occasion  of  the  moral  and  social 
regeneration  of  Europe."  * 

The  patriot  saw  his  country  degraded,  but  the 
Christian  wept  for  his  absent  faith.  Rationalism  was 
strongest  when  national  humiliation  was  deepest,, 
These  formed  a  fitting  twinship.  It  is  a  scathing 
comment  on  the  influence  of  skepticism  upon  a  people 
that,  in  general,  the  highest  feeling  of  nationality  is  co- 
existent with  the  devoutest  piety.  It  is  the  very  nature 
of  infidelity  to  deaden  the  emotions  of  patriotism,  and 
that  country  can  hardly  expect  to  prove  successful  if  it 
engage  in  war  while  its  citizens  are  imbued  with  reli- 
gious doubt.  If  lands  are  conquered,  it  knows  not  how 
to  govern  them ;  if  defeated,  skepticism  affords  but 
little  comfort  in  the  night  of  disaster.  We  do  not  at- 
tach a  fictitious  importance  to  Rationalism  when  we  say 
that  it  was  the  prime  agent  which  prevented  the  Ger- 
mans from  the  struggle  of  self-liberation,  and  that  the 
victory  of  Waterloo  and  the  Congress  of  Vienna  would 
never  have  been  needed  had  those  people  remained 
faithful  to  the  precedents  furnished  by  the  Reformers. 

When  Fichte  was  in  his  old  age,  and  had  completed 
his  system  of  philosophy,  he  published  his  Addresses 
to  the  German  People.  Political  writing  was  a  new 
field  for  him,  and  yet,  whoever  will  take  the  pains  to 
study  the  fruits  of  his  thinking,  will  easily  perceive 
that  the  spirit  animating  the  Addresses  was  the  same 
which  pervaded  his  entire  philosophy.  He  saw  the 
degradation  of  his  country.  Though  at  a  time  of  life 
when  youthful  fervor  is  supposed  to  have  passed  away, 
he  became  inflamed  with  indignation  at  the  insolence 
of  the  conqueror  and  the  apathy  of  his  countrymen,  and 
addressed  himself  to  the  consciousness  of  the  people  by 

1  Mohler's  Symbolism,  Memoir  of  Author. 


LIBERATION   AND    RESTORATION.  223 

calling  upon  them  to  arise,  and  reclothe  themselves 
with  their  old  historic  strength.  His  voice  was  not 
disregarded.  The  result  proved  that  those  who  had 
thought  him  in  his  dotage,  and  only  indulging  its 
loquacity,  were  much  mistaken.  He  wrote  that  enthu- 
siastic appeal  with  a  great  aim.  He  had  spent  the  most 
of  his  life  in  other  fields,  but  posterity  will  never  fail  to 
honor  those  who,  whatever  their  habits  of  thinking 
may  have  been,  for  once  at  least  have  the  sagacity  to 
see  the  wants  of  their  times,  and  possess  the  still  higher 
wisdom  of  meeting  them.  Fichte  died  in  1814  ;  but  it 
was  at  a  time  when,  Simeon-like,  he  could  congratulate 
himself  upon  the  prospects  of  humanity.  He  still  felt 
the  rich  glow  of  youth  when,  in  his  last  days,  he  could 
say  :  "  The  morning  light  has  broken,  and  already  gilds 
the  mountain-tops,  and  gives  promise  of  the  great  com- 
ing day." 

After  independence  had  been  achieved  and  the 
downfall  of  Napoleon  had  become  a  fact,  there  ap- 
peared evidences  of  new  evangelical  life.  When  the 
German  soldiers  recrossed  the  river  which  their  ancestors 
had  loved  to  call  "  Father  Rhine,"  and  felt  themselves 
the  proud  possessors  of  free  soil,  not  only  they,  but  all 
their  countrymen  living  in  the  Protestant  principalities, 
manifested  a  decided  dissatisfaction  with  that  skepti- 
cism which  had  paralyzed  them.  Moreover,  the  memory 
that  France  had  been  the  chief  agent  in  introducing 
Rationalism  was  not  likely  to  diminish  their  hatred  of 
all  infidelity.  The  masses  breathed  more  freely,  but 
they  were  still  imbued  with  serious  error.  Restoration 
was  the  watchword  in  politics  ;  but  it  was  soon  trans- 
ferred to  the  domain  of  religion  and  theology. 

But  great  as  was  the  influence  of  the  wars  of  free- 
dom in   bringing  back  the  German  heart  to  an  intense 


224  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

desire  for  a  more  elevated  nationality,  we  must  not  be 
unmindful  of  the  great  theological  forces  which  were 
preparing  for  a  thorough  religious  renovation. 

They  met  in  Schleiermacher.     When  quite  young 
he  was  placed,  first  at  Niesky  and  afterward  at  Barby, 
iu  the  care  of  the  Moravians.     It  was  among  these  de- 
vout people  that  he  became  inspired  with  that  enthu- 
siastic love  of  inner  religious  feeling;  which  characterized 
his  entire  career.     The  traces  of  Moravian  piety  are  per- 
ceptible in  all  his  writings.     His  own  words  concern- 
ing his  early  training  are  very  touching.     "  Piety,"  says 
he,  "  was  the  maternal  bosom,  in  the  sacred  shade  of 
which  my  youth  was  passed,  and  which  prepared  me  for 
the  yet  unknown  scenes  of  the  world.     In   piety  my 
spirit  breathed  before  I  found  my  peculiar  station  in 
science  and  the  affairs  of  life  ;  it  aided  me  when  I  began 
to  examine  into  the  faith  of  my  fathers,  and  to  purify 
my  thoughts  and  feelings  from  all  alloy ;  it  remained 
with  me  when  the  God  and   immortality  of  my  child- 
hood disappeared  from  my  doubting  sight ;  it  guided 
me  in  active  life ;  it  enabled  me  to  keep  my  character 
duly  balanced  between  my  faults  and  virtues ;  through 
its  means  I  have  experienced  friendship  and  love." 

He  became  a  student  at  Halle,  and  thence  removed 
to  Berlin,  where  he  was  appointed  chaplain  to  the 
House  of  Charity.  While  in  that  metropolis  he  had 
rare  opportunities  for  the  study  of  his  times.  He  saw 
that  the  indifference  and  doubt  which  centered  in  the 
court  and  the  university,  controlled  the  leaders  of  theol- 
ogy, literature,  and  statesmanship.  He  drew  his  philos- 
ophy largely  from  Jacobi,  exhibiting  with  that  thinker 
his  dissatisfaction  at  the  existing  condition  of  meta- 
physics and  theology.  Schleiermacher  could  not  look 
upon  the  dearth  around  him  without  the  deepest  emo- 


schleieemachee's  discoueses.  225 

tion.  He  asked  himself  if  there  was  no  remedy  for  the 
wide-spread  evil.  The  seat  of  the  disease  appeared  to 
him  to  be  the  false  deification  of  reason  in  particular ; 
and  the  general  mistake  of  making  religion  dependent 
upon  external  bases  instead  of  upon  the  heart  and  con- 
sciousness of  man.  His  conclusion  was  that  both  the 
friends  and  enemies  of  nationalism  were  mistaken,  and 
that  religion  consists  not  in  knowledge  but  in  feeling. 
It  was  in  1799  that  he  wrote  his  Discourses  on  Religion 
addressed  to  its  Cultivated  Despisers.  Striking  at  the 
principal  existing  evil,  which  was  indifference,  he  aimed 
to  show  the  only  method  for  the  eradication  of  them  all. 
The  late  Mr.  Vaughan,  in  speaking  of  the  position 
of  this  work,  says :  "  In  these  essays  Schleiermacher 
meets  the  Rationalist  objector  on  his  own  ground.  In 
what  aspect,  he  asks,  have  you  considered  religion  that 
you  so  despise  it  ?  Have  you  looked  on  its  outward  man- 
ifestations only  ?  These  the  peculiarities  of  an  age  or  a 
nation  may  modify.  You  should  have  looked  deeper. 
That  which  constitutes  the  religious  life  has  escaped 
you.  Your  criticism  has  dissected  a  dead  creed.  That 
scalpel  will  never  detect  a  soul.  Or  will  you  aver  that 
you  have  indeed  looked  upon  religion  in  its  inward 
reality  ?  Then  you  must  acknowledge  that  the  idea  of 
religion  is  inherent  in  human  nature,  that  it  is  a  great 
necessity  of  our  kind.  Your  quarrel  lies  in  this  case, 
not  with  religion  itself,  but  with  the  corruptions  of  it. 
In  the  name  of  humanity  you  are  called  on  to  examine 
closely,  to  appreciate  duly  what  has  been  already  done 
towards  the  emancipation  of  the  true  and  eternal  which 
lies  beneath  these  forms, — to  assist  in  what  may  yet 
remain.  Schleiermacher  separates  the  province  of  reli- 
gion from  those  of  action  and  of  knowledge.  Religion 
is  not  morality,  it  is  not  science.     Its  seat  is  found  ac- 


226  HISTOEY    OF   EATIONALISM. 

cordingly  in  the  third  element  of  our  nature — the  fee]- 
ing.  Its  essential  is  a  right  state  of  the  heart.  To  de- 
grade religion  to  the  position  of  a  mere  purveyor  of 
motive  to  morality  is  not  more  dishonorable  to  the 
ethics  which  must  ask  than  to  the  religion  which  will 
render  such  assistance.  .  .  .  The  feeling  Schleier- 
macher  advocates,  is  not  the  fanaticism  of  the  ignorant 
or  the  visionary  emotion  of  the  idle.  It  is  not  an  aim- 
less reverie  shrinking  morbidly  from  the  light  of  clear 
and  definite  thought.  Feeling,  in  its  sound  condition, 
affects  both  our  conception  and  our  will,  leads  to  knowl- 
edge and  to  action.  Neither  knowledge  nor  morality 
are  in  themselves  the  measure  of  a  man's  religiousness. 
Yet  religion  is  requisite  to  true  wisdom  and  morality 
inseparable  from  true  religion.  He  points  out  the  hurt- 
fulness  of  a  union  between  church  and  state.  With  in- 
dignant eloquence  he  descants  on  the  evils  which  have 
befallen  the  church  since  first  the  hem  of  the  priestly 
robe  swept  the  marble  of  the  imperial  palace."  x 

Religion  being  subjective,  according  to  Schleier- 
macher,  there  can  be  interminable  varieties  of  it.  As 
we  look  at  the  universe  in  numerous  lights,  and  thereby 
derive  different  impressions,  so  do  we  acquire  a  diversity 
of  conceptions  of  religion.  Hence  it  has  had  many  forms 
among  the  nations  of  the  earth.  There  is  in  each  breast 
a  religion  derived  from  the  object  of  intellectual  or 
spiritual  vision.  Christianity  is  the  great  sum  resulting 
from  the  antagonism  of  the  finite  and  the  infinite,  the 
human  and  divine.  The  fall  and  redemption,  separation 
and  reunion,  are  the  great  elements  from  which  we 
behold  Christianity  arise.  Of  all  kinds  of  religion  this 
alone  can  claim  universal  adaptation  and  rightful  su- 
premacy.    Christ  was  the  revelator  of  a  system  more 

1  Essays  and  Remains.    Vol.  1,  pp.  61-62. 


schleiermacher's  discourses.  227 

advanced  than  Polytheism  or  Judaism.  Only  by  view- 
ing his  religion  in  the  simple  light  in  which  he  places 
it  can  the  mind  find  safety  in  its  attempts  to  seek  for  a 
basis  of  faith.  But,  important  as  Christianity  is,  it  will 
avail  but  little  unless  it  become  the  heart-property  of 
the  theoretical  believer. 

The  Discourses  produced  a  deep  impression.  They 
inspired  the  class  to  whom  they  had  been  directed  with 
what  it  needed  most  of  all,  a  sense  of  dependence.  One 
could  not  read  them  and  close  the  volume  without  won- 
dering how  reason  could  be  deified  and  the  feeling  of 
the  heart  ignored.  There  were  multitudes  of  the  edu- 
cated and  cultivated  throughout  the  land  who,  having 
become  unfriendly  to  Christianity  through  the  persist- 
ence of  the  Rationalists,  were  equally  indisposed  to  be 
satisfied  with  a  mere  destructive  theology.  Something 
positive  was  what  they  wanted  ;  hence  the  great  ser- 
vice of  Schleiermacher  in  directing  them  to  Christianity 
as  the  great  sun  in  the  heavens,  and  then  to  the  heart 
as  the  organ  able  to  behold  the  light.  His  labor  was 
inestimably  valuable.  His  utterances  were  full  of  the 
enthusiasm  of  youth,  and,  years  later,  he  became  so  dis- 
satisfied with  the  work,  that  he  said  it  had  grown  strange 
even  to  himself.  As  if  over-careful  of  his  reputation,  to 
a  subsequent  edition  he  appended  large  explanatory 
notes  in  order  to  harmonize  his  recent  with  his  former 
views.  It  would  have  been  more  becoming  the  mature 
man  to  leave  those  earnest  appeals  to  reap  their  own 
reward.  The  times  had  changed ;  and  the  necessity 
which  had  first  called  forth  his  appeal  to  the  idolaters 
of  doubt  was  sufficient  apology.  Schleiermacher  wrote 
other  works,  of  which  he  and  his  disciples  were  much 
prouder ;  but  we  doubt  if  he  ever  issued  one  more  be- 
fitting the  class  addressed,  or  followed  with  more  bene- 


228  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

ficial  results.  Since  his  pen  has  been  stopped  by  death, 
those  very  discourses  have  led  many  a  skeptic  in  from 
the  cold  storm  which  beat  about  him,  and  given  him  a 
place  at  the  warm,  cheerful  fireside  of  Christian  faith. 
Severe  censure  has  been  cast  upon  them  because  of  theii 
traces  of  Spinoza.  It  is  enough  to  reply  that  their  author, 
in  the  fourth  edition,  repudiated  every  word  savoring 
of  Pantheism.  Of  books,  as  of  men,  it  is  best  to  form 
an  estimate  according  to  the  purpose  creating  them,  and 
the  moral  results  following  them.  Neander,  who  could 
well  observe  the  influence  of  the  Discourses,  gives  his 
testimony  in  the  following  language  :  "  Those  who  at 
that  time  belonged  to  the  rising  generation  will  remem- 
ber with  what  power  this  book  influenced  the  minds  of 
the  young,  being  written  in  all  the  vigor  of  youthful 
enthusiasm,  and  bearing  witness  to  the  neglected,  unde- 
niable religious  element  in  human  nature.  That  which 
constitutes  the  peculiar  characteristic  of  religion, 
namely,  that  it  is  an  independent  element  in  human  na- 
ture, had  fallen  into  oblivion  by  a  one-sided  rational  or 
speculative  tendency,  or  a  one-sided  disposition  to  absorb 
it  in  ethics.  Schleiermacher  had  touched  a  note  which, 
especially  in  the  minds  of  youth,  was  sure  to  send  forth 
its  melody  over  the  land.  Men  were  led  back  into 
the  depth  of  their  heart,  to  perceive  here  a  divine  draw- 
ing which,  when  once  called  forth,  might  lead  them 
beyond  that  which  the  author  of  this  impulse  had  ex- 
pressed with  distinct  consciousness." 

In  the  year  following  the  publication  of  the  Dis- 
courses on  Religion,  Schleiermacher  issued  his  Mono- 
logues. Here  he  gave  the  keynote  to  the  century. 
While,  only  the  year  before,  he  would  cultivate  the 
feeling  of  dependence  and  turn  the  mind  inward,  in  the 
Monologues  he  would  lead  man  to  a  knowledge  of  his 


229 

own  power,  and  show  how  far  his  individuality  can  go 
upon  its  mission  of  success.  Here  he  lauds  inde- 
pendence. Hence  the  latter  work  exerted  the  same 
kind  of  influence  which  attended  Fichte's  Addresses, 
and  it  had  no  small  share  in  the  reawakening  of  the 
people  to  their  innate  power.  There  might  appear  an 
antagonism  between  these  two  works  of  Schleierinacher, 
but,  while  the  Discourses  were  the  exposition  of  his 
religious  views,  the  Monologues  were  merely  the  annun- 
ciation of  his  moral  opinions  subsequently  developed  in 
his  System  of  Christian  Ethics.  The  latter  production 
was  not  destitute  of  enthusiasm.  In  fact,  the  Mono 
logues,  cultivating  the  spirit  of  independence,  were  far 
more  capable  of  arousing  and  invigorating  the  mind  and 
heart.  The  author  would  have  no  one  blind  to  the 
native  strength  secreted  in  every  breast,  nor  fail  to  cul- 
tivate sympathy  and  love  through  every  period  of  life. 
The  consciousness  should  be  a  world  in  itself;  not  even 
seeking  an  external  support,  but  satisfied  with  its  own 
introspection  ;  not  watching  the  storm  without,  but  sat- 
isfied with  surveying  the  gilded  halls  of  its  own  castle- 
home.  Thus  there  becomes,  instead  of  old  age,  con- 
tinuous youth.  This  was  his  own  pure  experience. 
"  For,"  said  he,  "  to  the  consciousness  of  inner  freedom, 
and  acting  in  accordance  with  it,  correspond  eternal 
youth  and  joy.  This  I  have  got  hold  of,  and  shall  never 
give  it  up  again  ;  and  with  a  smile  I  thus  see  vanishing 
the  light  of  mine  eyes,  and  white  hairs  springing  up 
among  my  fair  lock-.  Whatever  may  happen,  nothing 
shall  grieve  my  heart ;  the  pulse  of  my  inner  life  shall 
remain  fresh  until  I  die." 

A  strong  evidence  that  the  German  people  were 
learning  well  the  lessons  now  impressed  upon  them,  was 
the  increasing  fondness  for  the   institutions  of  purei 


230  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

times  and  a  growing  taste  for  history.  The  mind  found 
no  comfort  in  the  present,  and  it  was  therefore  driven 
back  upon  the  past  for  solace.  Poets  began  to  start  up, 
clothed  with  the  spirit  of  independence,  and  singing  of 
bygone  days  in  such  a  way  that  they  were  understood 
as  saying,  "  Now  you  see  what  our  fathers  did ;  how 
they  believed  and  fought ;  go  you  aud  do  likewise." 
This  new  race  sprang  from  the  Romantic  School,  led 
by  Tieck,  Schlegel,  and  others ;  but  while  it  possessed 
that  enthusiastic  admiration  of  the  past  which  these 
men  indulged,  their  literary  offspring  exhibited  a  more 
earnest  christian  faith.  It  was  in  that  day  of  distress 
that  Uhland  first  poured  forth  his  notes  of  awakening  ; 
that  Korner  sounded  the  bugle-call  of  freedom ;  that 
Riickert  molded  sonnets  stronger  than  bullets ;  and 
Kerner  sighed  for  a  world  where  there  is  no  war,  and 
no  rumors  of  war. 

Thus,  when  liberation  came,  no  one  class  could 
claim  to  be  the  sole  agent  of  its  accomplishment.  But 
it  is  certain  that  if  the  religious  spirit  of  the  people 
had  not  been  appealed  to  and  aroused,  all  literary  and 
aesthetic  efforts  would  have  been  in  vain.  It  was  the 
religious  consciousness  of  the  masses  east  of  the  Rhine 
which,  being  thoroughly  awakened,  drew  the  sword, 
and  gained  the  victory  of  Waterloo.  If  we  view  that 
great  crisis  in  European  history  in  any  light  whatever, 
we  cannot  resist  the  conviction  that  its  importance  in 
the  sphere  of  religion  was  equally  great  with  its  politi- 
cal magnitude. 

The  King  of  Prussia,  Frederic  William  III.,  began 
the  work  of  ecclesiastical  reconstruction.  There  were 
three  questions  of  great  delicacy,  but  of  prime  importance, 
which  he  attempted  to  solve ;  the  constitution  of  the 
Protestant  church ;  the  improvement  of  liturgical  forms ; 


UNION    OF    PROTESTANT    CHURCHES.  231 

and  the  union  of  the  two  Protestant  confessions. 
Whatever  course  the  king  might  adopt  could  not  fail 
to  make  many  enemies.  But  he  belonged  to  a  line  of 
princes  who  had  been  aiming  at  the  unity  of  the  church 
for  more  than  two  centuries,  and  who,  with  the  single 
exception  of  Frederic  II.,  had  endeavored  to  preserve 
popular  faith  in  the  Scriptures.  Preparations  were 
being  made  for  the  three  hundredth  anniversary  jubilee 
of  the  Reformation.  The  land  being  now  redeemed,  it 
was  hoped  that  the  occasion  would  inspire  all  hearts 
with  confidence  in  the  future  of  both  state  and  church. 
The  king  deemed  it  a  most  favorable  opportunity  to 
bring  the  two  branches  of  the  Protestant  church  to- 
gether, not  by  one  coming  over  to  the  territory  of  the 
other,  but  by  mutual  compromise,  by  the  rejection  of 
the  terms  Lutheran  and  Reformed,  and  by  the  assump- 
tion of  a  new  denominational  name. 

There  was  really  no  reason  why  the  two  confessions 
should  not  be  united,  for  it  was  very  plain  that  the 
adherents  of  both  were  not  rigid  in  their  attachment. 
The  Calvinists  were  no  longer  tenaciously  devoted  to 
their  founder's  views  of  absolute  predestination,  while 
the  Lutherans,  having  departed  from  the  doctrine  of  the 
real  presence  in  the  Lord's  Supper,  had  adopted  the 
Zwinglian  theory.  The  rigid  authority  of  the  sym- 
bolical books  was  but  loosely  held  by  Lutherans  and 
Calvinists.  Frederic  William  III.,  seeing  that  the  sep- 
aration was  more  imaginary  than  real,  wrote  a  letter  on 
the  second  of  May,  1817,  to  Bishop  Sack  and  Provost 
Hanstein,  in  which  he  said  :  "  I  expect  proposals  from 
you  concerning  the  union  of  the  two  confessions,  which 
are  in  fact  so  similar ;  and  as  to  the  easiest  method  of 
effecting  the  same."  On  the  twenty-seventh  day  of  the 
same  month  he  addressed  a  circular  to  all  ecclesiastical 


232  HISTORY    OF    NATIONALISM. 

functionaries  within  his  dominions,  calling  ipon  them 
to  exert  their  influence  for  the  union  of  the  two 
churches,  and  to  give  notice  that  the  approaching  jubilee 
would  be  the  signal  for  it  to  take  place.  The  thirty 
first  of  October  was  the  anniversary,  and  the  plan  wais 
so  far  successful  that  in  many  places  the  people  and 
ministry  of  both  confessions  met  on  that  day  for  divine 
worship  and  partook  of  the  Lord's  Supper  together. 
The  fruit  of  the  movement  was  highly  satisfactory  to 
the  Prussian  King.  Very  soon  after  the  anniversary  of 
the  Reformation,  the  terms  Lutheran  and  Reformed 
were  stricken  from  official  documents,  and  the  united 
State  Church  was  henceforth  known  as  the  Evangelical 
Church. 

Beyond  the  limits  of  Prussia  the  Union  gave  rise  to 
animated  discussion  ;  but  within  the  space  of  five  years 
it  was  effected  in  Nassau,  Rhenish  Bavaria,  the  Palati- 
nate, Rhenish  Hesse,  and  Dessau.  It  encountered  the 
most  decided  opposition  in  the  person  of  Harms,  a  pas- 
tor of  the  city  of  Kiel.  He  was  not  opposed  to  any 
movement  which  he  thought  would  conduce  to  the 
advantage  of  Christ's  kingdom,  but  it  was  his  opinion 
that  a  return  to  the  old  Lutheran  orthodoxy  was  more 
needed  than  the  union  of  the  two  churches.  The  faith 
of  the  fathers,  and  not  the  union  of  Rationalistic  divines, 
was,  in  his  view,  the  only  method  of  deliverance. 
Harms  was  little  known  outside  his  own  province  until 
the  publication  of  his  ninety-five  Theses  in  connection 
with  the  original  ninety -five  nailed  by  Luther  to  the 
door  of  the  Schlosskirche  in  Wittenberg.  He  was  the 
son  of  a  plain  Holstein  miller,  and  had  been  indoc- 
trinated into  the  Lutheran  catechism  during  his  early 
youth.  His  first  lessons  in  Latin  and  Greek  were  re- 
ceived at  the  hands  of  a  Rationalistic  pastor  in  his  na 


harms'  ninety-five  theses.  233 

tive  town,  but  he  assisted  his  father  in  the  mill  until 
he  was  nineteen  years  of  age.  He  then  visited  the 
university  of  Kiel,  and  in  due  time  entered  upon  the 
pastoral  work.  He  scorned  the  customary  dry  method 
of  preaching,  and  aimed  to  reach  the  hearts  of  his  hear- 
ers by  any  praiseworthy  method  within  his  power. 
He  made  use  of  popular  illustrations  and  ordinary  inci- 
dents. His  congregations  increased,  not  only  in  the 
attendance  of  the  middle  and  lower  classes,  but  of  the 
gentry  and  wealthy.  His  earnest  plainness  was  so 
novel  and  unexpected  that  those  who  had  long  absent- 
ed themselves  from,  the  sanctuary  were  rejoiced  to 
attend  the  ministrations  of  a  preacher  who  seemed  to 
believe  something  positive  and  Scriptural,  and  who  had 
the  boldness  to  say  what  he  did  believe. 

This  was  the  man  who  came  forth  on  the  occasion 
of  the  anniversary  of  the  Reformation  as  the  champion 
for  a  return  to  the  spirit  of  the  olden  time.  He  held 
that  reason  had  totally  supplanted  revelation  in  the 
pulpits,  universities,  and  lower  schools,  and  that,  until 
faith  was  crowned  with  supremacy,  there  was  no  hope 
of  relief.  The  Theses  exhibited  great  directness  and 
clearness  of  appeal,  and  a  keen  insight  into  the  methods 
of  popular  address.  As  a  specimen  of  their  style  we 
introduce  the  following  extracts  :  "  III.  With  the  idea 
of  a  progressing  Reformation,  in  the  manner  in  which 
this  idea  is  at  present  understood,  and  especially  in  the 
manner  in  which  we  are  reminded  of  it,  Lutheranism 
will  be  reformed  back  into  heathenism,  and  Christianity 
out  of  the  world.  IX.  In  matters  of  faith,  reason  ;  and 
as  regards  the  life,  conscience,  may  be  called  the  Popes 
of  our  age.  XI.  Conscience  cannot  pardon  sins.  XXI. 
In  the  sixteenth  century  the  pardon  of  sins  cost  money, 
after  all ;    in  the    nineteenth  it  may  be  had  without 


234  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

money,  for  people  help  themselves  to  it.  XXIV.  En  an 
old  hymn-book  it  was  said,  '  Two  places,  O  man,  thou 
hast  before  thee  ; '  but  in  modern  times  they  have  slain 
the  devil  and  dammed  up  hell.  XXXII.  The  so-called 
religion  of  reason  is  destitute  either  of  reason  or  re 
ligion,  or  both.  XLVII.  If  in  matters  of  religion,  rea- 
son claims  to  be  more  than  a  layman,  it  becomes  a 
heretic;  that  avoid,  Titus  iii.  10.  LXIV.  Christians 
should  be  taught  that  they  have  the  right  not  to  toler- 
ate any  unchristian  and  un-Lutheran  doctrine  in  the 
pulpits,  hymn-books,  and  school-books.  LXVII.  It  is 
a  strange  claim  that  it  must  be  permitted  to  teach  a 
new  faith  from  a  chair  which  the  old  faith  had  set  up, 
and  from  a  mouth  to  which  the  old  faith  gives  food. 
LXXI.  Reason,  turned  head,  goes  about  in  the  Lu- 
theran church :  it  tears  Christianity  from  the  altar, 
casts  God's  works  out  of  the  pulpit,  throws  dirt  into 
the  baptismal  water,  receives  all  kinds  of  people  as  god- 
fathers, hisses  the  priests ;  and  all  the  people  follow  its 
example,  and  have  done  so  for  a  long  time.  And  yet 
it  is  not  bound.  On  the  contrary,  this  is  thought  to  be 
the  genuine  doctrine  of  Luther,  and  not  of  Carlstadt. 
LXXIV.  The  assertion  that  we  are  more  advanced  and 
enlightened  can  surely  not  be  proved  by  the  present 
ignorance  as  regards  true  Christianity.  Many  thou- 
sands can  declare,  as  did  once  the  disciples  of  John, 
'  We  have  not  so  much  as  heard  whether  there  be  any 
Holy  Ghost.'  LXXV.  Like  a  poor  maid,  they  would 
not  enrich  the  Lutheran  church  by  a  marriage.  Do  not 
perform  it  over  Luther's  bones  !  He  will  thereby  be 
recalled  to  life,  and  then — wo  to  you !  LXX  VII.  To  say 
that  time  has  taken  away  the  wall  of  separation  be- 
tween Lutherans  and  Reformed  is  not  a  clear  speech 
LXXXII.  Just  as  reason  has  prevented  the  Reformed 


EXCITEMENT   PRODUCED    BY    HAlCMS'    THESES.         235 

from  finishing  their  church  and  reducing  it  to  unity,  so 
the  reception  of  reason  into  the  Lutheran  church  would 
cause  nothing  but  confusion  and  destruction.  XCII. 
The  Evangelical  Catholic  church  is  a  glorious  church 
she  holds  and  forms  herself  preeminently  by  the  Sacra- 
ment XCIII.  The  Evangelical  Reformed  church  is  a 
glorious  church ;  she  holds  and  forms  herself  by  the 
Word  of  God.  XCIV.  More  glorious  than  either  is  the 
Evangelical  Lutheran  church ;  she  holds  and  forms 
herself  both  by  the  Sacrament  and  the  Word  of  God."  1 
The  appearance  of  the  Theses  of  Harms  created  a 
great  sensation.  At  a  time  when  the  union  of  the  two 
churches  became  so  desirable  to  many,  they  seemed  to 
be  a  firebrand  of  destruction.  Plainly,  it  would  be 
best  to  return  to  the  faith  of  the  Reformers,  but  some 
of  the  most  evangelical  men  claimed  that  the  speediest 
method  of  return  was  through  the  Union.  There  appear- 
ed replies  to  the  Theses  from  all  quarters  of  the  coun- 
try, almost  every  theologian  of  distinction  assuming  the 
character  of  the  controversialist.  As  many  as  two 
hundred  works  appeared  on  the  subject,  the  most  of 
them  bearing  strongly  against  Harms.  In  Kiel  and 
Hoi  stein,  where  he  was  best  known,  the  excitement  was 
intense.  Even  churches  and  clubs  were  divided,  and 
the  rancor  went  so  far  as  to  invade  private  families,  and 
create  domestic  divisions  and  heart-burnings.  Seldom 
has  a  theological  topic  caused  such  a  blaze  of  tumult. 
Harms  was  declared  guilty  of  heinous  offenses.  He  was 
charged  with  Catholicism,  and  reminded  that  attention 
to  the  mill  would  be  much  better  employment  than 
wielding  the  pen.  He  was  accused  of  aiming  at  the 
protracted  division  of  the  sects,  and  ministering  in  al] 
possible  ways  to  the  devices  of  Satan.    His  was  the  fate 

1  Quoted  from  Kahnis,  History  of  German  Protestantism,  pp.  224-225. 

17 


236  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

of  the  partisan.  He  did  a  great  work,  for  the  contro- 
versy arising  from  his  Theses  hastened  the  settlement 
of  those  points  which  the  times  required  should  be 
solved  as  speedily  as  possible.  Indeed,  this  very  dis- 
cussion was  a  hopeful  indication ;  for  it  proved  that, 
long  and  terrible  as  the  sway  of  Rationalism  had  been, 
there  was  still  some  interest  felt  among  the  people  on 
the  themes  most  intimately  connected  with  faith  and 
practice  It  was  a  bright  ray  of  the  morning  of  reno- 
vation when  the  mere  fact  of  vital  religion  was  power- 
ful enough  to  enlist  public  attention. 


CHAPTEK    X. 

RELATIONS  OF  RATIONALISM  AND  SUPERNATURALI8M. 

1810—1835. 

The  task  imposed  upon  the  new  state  church  taxed 
its  powers  to  their  utmost  tension.  Much  that  had  been 
achieved  was  now  no  longer  useful,  for  the  stand-point 
of  parties  was  totally  changed.  The  Calvinist  had 
written  against  Rationalism  with  one  eye  upon  heresy 
and  the  other  upon  Lutheranism.  The  Lutheran  had 
betrayed  more  spleen  toward  his  Reformed  brethren 
than  toward  the  disciples  of  Semler  and  Ernesti.  But 
when  the  union  was  effected  there  occurred  the  imme- 
diate necessity  of  new  methods  of  attack  upon  the  ene- 
mies of  orthodoxy,  and  a  steadfast  cultivation  of  friendly 
feelings  between  newly-formed  friends.  As  the  ad- 
herents of  the  two  confessions  were  now  united,  why 
might  not  their  conjoined  strength  be  wielded  for  the 
overthrow  of  skepticism  ?  What  was  there,  then,  to 
prevent  these  great  branches  of  the  church  from  coming 
forward  in  perfect  unison,  and  dealing  strong  blows 
against  the  system  which  had  well  nigh  been  the  ruin 
of  them  both  ? 

The  devotees  of  reason  saw  their  danger,  for  the 
day  of  the  union  was  an  evil  one  for  them.  But  they 
did  not  become  so  alarmed  as  to  take  to  flight  and  give 
up   the  contest.     On  the  other  hand,  they  no  soonei 


238  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

perceived  the  awakening  of  the  German  people  to  a 
sense  of  patriotism  and  independence,  than  they  pre- 
dicted a  similar  disposition  to  return  to  the  old  faith ; 
and  being  thus  convinced  of  their  danger,  they  wrote 
very  vigorously,  and  attempted  to  be  fully  prepared 
for  the  onset.  We  therefore  behold  the  anomaly  of  a 
system  which  had  almost  run  its  race  before  arriving 
at  a  formal  exposition. 

Rationalism  never  attained  to  the  dignity  of  a  clear 
and  cogent  elucidation  until  the  publication  of  Rohr's 
Letters  on  Rationalism,  and  of  Wegsch eider's  Institutes. 
It  had  reached  the  acme  of  its  prosperity  at  the  be- 
ginning of  the  century,  yet  the  former  work  was  not 
written  until  1813,  and  the  latter  not  until  1817. 
There  was  power  in  both  these  productions.  The  for- 
mer was  bold,  popular,  startling,  and  not  without  a 
show  of  learning.  It  was  intended  for  the  masses.  The 
latter  was  a  complement  of  the  former;  more  heavy, 
but  by  virtue  of  its  weight  adapted  to  that  class  of  peo- 
ple, everywhere  abundant,  who  suspect  either  danger  or 
puerility  in  every  earnest  sentence.  The  author  held 
that  it  was  the  province  of  Protestantism  to  develop 
Christianity  and  Christian  theology  to  a  pure  faith  of 
reason.  Issuing  his  work  in  the  year  of  the  Reforma- 
tion jubilee,  he  dedicated  it  to  the  shades  of  Luther. 
But  Rohr  and  Wegscheider,  as  far  as  their  capacity  to 
injure  Christian  faith  was  concerned,  stood  at  the  wrong 
term  of  the  history  of  Rationalism.  Had  they  written 
a  half  century  earlier  their  works  would  have  been 
much  more  injurious  to  the  Christian  Church.  But  the 
system  they  would  now  strengthen  and  propagate  was 
beginning  to  decay,  and  it  was  beyond  their  power  to 
save  it  from  ruin.  They  built  a  house  for  an  occupant 
who  was  too  old  to  enjoy  either  the  fascinating  sym- 


RELNHARD    AND    TTTTMANN.  239 

metry  of  its  architecture  or  the  gorgeous  splendor  of  its 
furniture. 

It  was  at  the  time  of  which  we  speak  that  we  first 
find  frequent  use  of  the  terms  nationalism  and  Super 
naturalism.  The  more  zealous  friends  of  each  school 
marshaled  themselves  for  the  final  struggle.  The 
conflict  became  hand  to  hand,  and  quick  and  direct 
blows  were  dealt  by  both  combatants.  One  of  the 
foremost  among  the  champions  of  the  old  faith  was 
Reinhard,  who  declared  that  there  was  an  irrepressible 
difference  between  reason  and  revelation,  Rationalism 
and  Supernaturalism  ;  that  there  was  no  possible  point 
of  compromise ;  that  they  had  nothing  in  common ; 
and  that  either  the  one  or  the  other  must  exercise  au- 
thority. Reinhard  avowed  himself  in  favor  of  the  un- 
divided supremacy  of  faith,  and  would  have  reason 
subordinate.  The  key-note  of  his  active  life  and  in- 
spiring writings  is  found  in  his  own  language — words 
\smich,  had  he  written  nothing  else,  are  sufficient  to 
render  him  memorable.  "  While  yet  a  boy,1'  said  he, 
"  when  I  read  the  Bible  I  considered  it  the  word  of 
God  to  man,  and  never  have  I  ceased  to  hold  this  view ; 
so  that  now  it  is  so  holy  to  me  and  its  utterances  so 
decisive  that  a  single  sentence  which  would  reproach 
its  sanctity  fills  me  with  horror,  just  as  an  immoral 
sentiment  would  rouse  my  conviction  of  virtue." 

Tittmann  entered  the  lists  with  a  work  directed  at 
the  very  heart  of  Rationalism.  He  charged  it  with 
being  unimprovable,  and  merely  temporary  and  unsatis- 
factory. His  book,  entitled  Supernaturalism,  Ration- 
alism, and  Atheism,  went  still  further ;  for  it  aimed  to 
show  that  if  the  Rationalists  believe  what  they  say,  they 
are  nothing  less  than  atheists.  Granting  their  premises, 
the  conclusion  must  be  that  there  is  no  God,  and  that 


240  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

if  God  be  not  the  author  of  revelation,  there  is  also  no 
God  of  nature. 

But  while  this  war  of  books  was   going  on  with 
great  bitterness  on  both  sides,  there  arose  a  powerful 
band  of  mediators,  who  believed  that   no   advantage 
could  be  gained  for  either  combatant  by  continuing  the 
strife,  and  that  some  point  of  union  would  have  to  be 
adopted  before  there  could  be  peace  and  prosperity. 
Tzschirner  differed  from  Reinhard  in  his  view  of  the 
antagonism  between  Rationalism  and  Supernaturalism. 
He  contended  that  there  were  features  of  sympathy  be- 
tween the  two  systems,  and  that  the  work  of  harmoniz- 
ing  reason   and   revelation   was   not    impossible.     He 
therefore  attempted,  in  the  present  case,  what  Calixtua 
had  formerly  tried  in  behalf  of  the  Calvinists  and  Lu- 
therans.    But  the  syncretism  of  Tzschirner  was  equally 
difficult  of  accomplishment.     He  conceded  too  much  to 
the  Rationalists :    for  he  would   unite  them  and  their 
enemies  on  the  ground  that  the  aim  of  revelation  is  only 
to  found  a  moral  and  religious  institution  through  the 
personal  agency  of  a  Divine  Ambassador ;  to  strengthen 
the  truths  of  the  religion  of  reason  ;  and  to  bring  them 
so  near  to  the  consciences  of  men  that  the  authority 
of  reason  to  prove  the  origin  and  contents  of  revelation 
cannot  be  doubted. 

But  Tzschirner's  influence  did  not  consist  so  much 
in  the  particular  plan  he  would  execute  as  in  the  ten- 
dency toward  union  which  he  was  the  chief  agent  in 
creating.  There  were  numbers  who,  having  read  his 
works  on  this  subject,  were  loud  in  their  demand  for 
the  union  of  reason  and  revelation  on  some  basis  that 
would  compromise  neither  the  value  of  the  former  nor 
the  sanctity  of  the  latter.  Many  books  appeared  whose 
sole  theme  was  the  possible  harmonization  of  these  ele- 


schleiermacher's  system  of  doctrines.        241 

nents,  which  heretofore  had  been  deemed  utterly  incon- 
gruous.1 Schott's  Letters  on  Religion  and  the  Faith  of 
the  Christian  Revelation  was  directed  to  the  same 
mark,  and  received  great  attention  at  the  hands  of  both 
parties.  According  to  their  author,  there  was  no  op- 
position between  the  religion  of  reason  and  revelation, 
for  Christianity  is  the  mere  expression  of  the  highest 
reason.  Both  are  derived  from  the  same  fountain, 
which  is  Divine  reason.  Nor  is  there  any  real  differ- 
ence between  the  purpose  of  Christianity  and  that  of 
the  religion  of  reason.  Each  one  aims  at  the  highest 
good. 

But  it  soon  became  very  evident  that  the  Rational- 
ists and  Supernaturalists  were  unable  to  harmonize. 
The  points  of  difference  were  so  decided  that  it  was 
vain  to  expect  a  union.  Reinhard  was  correct  in  his 
opinion  that  one  or  the  other  would  have  to  yield. 
Just  at  the  crisis  when  these  two  systems  were  attract- 
ing greatest  attention,  Schleiermacher  published  his 
System  of  Doctrines,  1821.  In  this  work  he  proved 
what  had  not  been  conceived  by  any  writer  save  him- 
self, that  there  was  another  road  to  progress.  As  soon 
as  it  gained  a  hearing  the  disputants  saw  that  their 
arguments  were  no  longer  of  value,  that  the  ground 
of  the  discussion  was  altogether  changed,  and  that  the 
cause  of  faith  must  eventually  triumph.  The  book 
was  a  complete  surprise  to  all  parties.  It  was  a 
stroke  of  genius,  destined  alike  to  recast  existing  theol- 
ogy and  to  create  a  new  public  sentiment  for  the  future. 

The  leading  ideas  developed  in  this  master-piece 
of  theology  are  Christ,  Religion,  and  the  Church.  The 
Rationalists  had  ever  held  that  reason  is  the  criterion 
of  truth,  but   Schleiermacher    elevates   Christian  con- 

1  Baur,  KirchengeschicMe  d.  19  Jahrhunderts,  pp.  180-181. 


242  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

sciousness  to  the  throne.  They  had  reduced  religion  to 
a  mere  formal  morality  ;  yet  he  shows  that  religion  and 
morality  are  very  different,  and  that  the  former  consists 
neither  in  knowledge  or  action,  but  in  the  sentiment  or 
feeling  of  the  heart.  Thus  he  develops  the  opinion  first 
published  in  the  Discourses  on  Religion.  He  uses  the 
term  K  piety  "  to  designate  religion.  This  piety  should 
become  the  great  spring  of  our  life  and  the  inspiring 
power  of  faith.  There  is  no  real  inconsistency  between 
knowledge  and  piety ;  they  can  harmonize  beautifully 
when  carried  to  their  loftiest  extent.  The  religious 
feeling,  which  judges  truth,  is  characterized  by  absolute 
dependence.  This  is  not  degrading  to  man,  but  his  true 
dignity  consists  in  it.  We  have  different  concep- 
tions of  God,  derived  from  the  feeling  of  dependence, 
which  is  varied  according  to  the  nature  of  outward  cir 
cumstances.  Christ  must  be  judged  by  us  not  so  much 
according  to  the  received  accounts  of  his  life  as  by  his 
great  relations  to  us  as  Redeemer  and  Saviour.  Our 
view  of  him  must  be  deeper  than  his  mere  incarnation. 
He  was  concerned  in  creation  just  so  far  as  it  wae 
not  completed  until  redeemed.  If  we  would  have 
communion  with  God  we  can  enjoy  it  only  through  the 
medium  of  Christ.  The  peculiar  value  of  redemption 
lies  in  its  applicability  to  our  necessity  for  salvation. 
The  very  sinlessness  of  Christ  can  be  in  a  measure  in- 
corporated with  our  humanity,  and  we  should  aim  after 
the  mind  that  was  in  Christ.  We  are  never  fully 
united  with  Christ  until  we  have  a  perfect  spirit  of  de- 
pendence. When  this  occurs,  the  soul  is  passing  into 
the  glorious  condition  of  the  new  birth.  The  church  is 
the  depository  of  that  spirit  of  Christ  which  every  be- 
liever must  enjoy  in  order  to  inherit  eternal  life.  The 
church,  however,  is  not  self-existent.     Like  the  heavenly 


THEOLOGICAL    EEEOES    OF   SCHLEIERMACHEE.         243 

bodies,  whose  motions  are  constantly  maintained  by 
infinite  power,  the  church  is  ever  dependent  upon 
Christ's  agency  for  its  very  life.  Christ  is  the  spirit 
moving  in  history  and  controlling  all  things  for  the 
greatest  good.  The  church  is  in  some  sense  an  organ- 
ism of  which  Christ  is  the  head.  This  fact  is  the  cen- 
tral point  of  theology,  for  without  Christ  our  faith  is 
vain.1 

Such  teaching  was  what  the  times  needed.  The 
mind  required  to  be  directed  to  Christ  as  the  only 
remedy  for  skepticism.  But  we  must  confess  that,  in 
the  midst  of  some  of  the  most  evangelical  expositions  of 
divine  truth,  Schleiermacher  gave  expression  to  serious 
doubts.  He  disclaimed  any  great  authority  inherent  in 
the  Old  Testament  in  the  following  style :  "  The  Old 
Testament  Scriptures  are  indebted  for  their  place  in  our 
Bible  partly  to  the  appeals  made  to  them  by  the  New 
Testament  Scriptures,  and  partly  to  the  historic  connec- 
tion of  Christian  worship  and  the  Jewish  synagogue, 
without  participating,  on  that  account,  in  the  normal 
dignity,  or  inspiration,  of  those  of  the  New  Testament."  2 
As  far  as  the  inspiration  of  the  Old  Testament  is  con- 
cerned, there  must  be  a  distinction  observed  between 
the  law  and  the  prophets.  The  law  cannot  be  inspired, 
for  the  spirit  that  could  inspire  it  would  be  in  conflict 
with  that  which  God  sends  into  the  heart  by  virtue  of 
our  connection  with  Christ.  Upon  the  law  depend  all 
the  subsequent  historical  books ;  and  both  are,  there- 
fore, uninspired,  according  to  the  standard  by  which 

1  For  summaries  of  Schleiermacher's  views,  see  Herzog,  Encyclopmdie . 
Baur,  Kirchengeschichte,  des  19  Jahrhunderts ;  Vaughan,  Essays  and  He- 
mains;  Gieseler,  Kirchengeschichte,  vol.  vi. ;  Kurtz,  Church  History,  vol.  ii. ; 
Saintes.  Histoire  du  Rationalisme  ;  Farrar,  History  of  Free  Thought  ;  and 
Anberlen,  Gottlicfie   Offenbarung,  vol.  i. 

2  Die  Glaubenslehre. 


244  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

we  judge  the  New  Testament.  The  prominent  portions 
of  the  prophetic  writings  proceed  principally  from  the 
material  spirit  of  the  people,  which  is  not  the  Christian 
spirit. 

It  is  plain  that  Schleiermacher's  views  concern 
ing  the  Trinity  were  defective.  He  despatches  it  thus : 
"  The  church  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  demands  that  we 
should  think  each  of  the  three  persons  equal  to  the 
Divine  Being,  and  vice  versa;  and  each  of  the  three 
persons  equal  to  the  others.  We  are  unable  to  do 
either  the  one  or  the  other,  but  can  only  conceive  the 
persons  in  a  gradation ;  and  in  like  manner  the  unity 
of  the  substance  either  less  than  the  persons,  or  the  con- 
trary." He  discourses  eloquently  of  the  Spirit ;  but, 
after  all,  he  teaches  that  the  Holy  Ghost  is  only  the 
common  spirit  of  the  Christian  church  as  a  corporate 
body  striving  after  unity.  The  term  "  common  spirit," 
which  he  employs,  he  understands  to  be  the  same  that 
is  used  in  worldly  polity  ;  that  is,  the  common  tendency 
in  all,  who  form  one  moral  person,  toward  the  welfare 
of  the  whole.  This  beneficial  sentiment  is,  in  each,  the 
peculiar  love  to  every  individual.  The  Holy  Ghost  is 
the  union  of  the  Divine  Being  with  human  nature,  in 
the  form  of  the  common  spirit  animating  the  corporate 
life  of  the  faithful.  Schleiermacher  did  not  reject 
miracles  altogether  as  historical  facts,  but  cast  doubt 
upon  their  character  by  holding  that,  if  they  did  occur, 
it  was  only  in  conformity  with  a  higher  nature  of  which 
we  know  nothing.  His  opinion  concerning  the  doctrine 
of  angels  was  not  orthodox ;  for  he  rejected  the  exist- 
ence of  the  devil,  and  the  supposition  of  the  fall  of  an- 
gels from  heaven.  Some  of  the  most  important  events 
in  connection  with  Christ  were  discarded  by  him  as 
unnecessary  to  saving   faith,    namely,  the   miraculous 


schleiermacher's  theological  position.       245 

conception,  the  resurrection,  ascension,  and  return  of 
Christ  to  judgment.  In  his  opinion  sin  was  hurtfulness, 
not  guilt. 

It  is  astonishing  that  we  find  so  much  truth  and 
erroi  concentrated  in  the  same  man.  But  Neander  was 
nevertheless  correct  in  the  words  in  which  he  an- 
nounced Schleiermacher's  death  :  "  We  have  now  lost 
a  man  from  whom  will  be  dated  henceforth  a  new  era 
in  the  history  of  theology."  In  reading  closely  eome 
of  his  false  positions,  we  soon  meet  with  something  so 
deep  and  spiritually  earnest  that  we  are  forgetful  of  the 
doubt,  being  attracted  by  the  greater  glow  of  the  living 
truth.  As  life  advanced  he  improved  in  his  apprecia- 
tion of  doctrine,  and  his  latest  works  are  hardly  recog- 
nizable as  written  by  the  same  hand.  He  published 
several  books,  of  which  we  have  made  no  mention,  but 
in  all  the  fruits  of  his  pen  he  revealed  an  unfailing 
love  of  a  personal  Redeemer.  His  sermons  were  the 
outflow  of  his  genial  nature,  kindled  by  his  stern  view 
of  Christ's  communion  with  his  living  disciples  Mr. 
Farrar  eloquently  sums  up  his  work,  though  it  must  be 
acknowledged  that  the  present  generation  stands  too 
near  the  time  of  Schleiermacher's  activity  to  bestow  an 
impartial  estimate  upon  either  the  theological  position 
of  the  man  or  the  influence  resulting  from  him.  "  We 
have  seen,"  says  this  author,  "  how  completely  he  caught 
the  influences  of  his  time,  absorbed  them  and  transmitted 
them.  If  his  teaching  was  defective  in  its  constructive 
side ;  if  he  did  not  attain  the  firm  grasp  of  objective 
verity  which  is  implied  in  perfect  doctrinal,  not  to  say 
critical,  orthodoxy,  he  at  least  gave  the  death-blow  to 
the  old  Rationalism,  which  either  from  an  empirical  or 
a  rational  point  of  view,  proposed  to  gain  such  a  philos- 
ophy of  religion  as  reduced  it  to  morality.     He  rekin- 


246  HISrOKY    OY   RATIONALISM. 

died  spiritual  apprehensions ;  he,  above  ail,  drew  atten- 
tion to  the  peculiar  character  of  Christianity,  as  some- 
thing more  than  the  republication  of  natural  religion, 
in  the  same  manner  that  the  Christian  consciousness 
offered  something  more  than  merely  moral  experience. 
He  set  forth,  however  imperfectly,  the  idea  of  redemp- 
tion, and  the  personality  of  the  Redeemer ;  and  awak- 
ened religious  aspirations,  which  led  his  successors  to  a 
deeper  appreciation  of  the  truth  as  it  is  in  Jesus.  Much 
of  his  theology  and  some  part  of  his  philosophy  had 
only  a  temporary  interest  relatively  to  the  times ;  but 
his  influence  was  perpetual.  The  faults  were  those  of 
his  age ;  the  excellencies  were  his  own.  Men  caught 
his  deep  love  to  a  personal  Christ  without  imbibing 
his  doctrinal  opinions.  His  own  views  became  more 
evangelical  as  his  life  went  on,  and  the  views  of  his 
disciples  more  deeply  Scriptural  than  those  of  their 
master.  Thus  the  light  kindled  by  him  waxed  purer 
and  purer.  The  mantle  remained  after  the  prophet's 
spirit  had  ascended  to  the  God  that  gave  it."  * 

De  Wette  was,  like  Schleiermacher  his  friend  and 
colleague  at  Berlin,  a  man  in  whom  can  be  seen  all  the 
marks  of  a  transition-character.  There  are  two  sides  to 
his  theological  views,  one  bearing  upon  the  old  Ra- 
tionalism and  in  sympathy  with  it,  the  other  directly 
tending  to  revive  faith  and  religion.  Even  before 
Schleiermacher  became  generally  known,  De  Wette 
had  openly  declared  that  religion  can  be  based  upon 
feeling  alone,  and  that  a  personal  Saviour  is  the  neces- 
sary centre  of  Christian  faith.  The  entire  theology  of 
De  Wette  was  the  outgrowth  of  the  cold,  critical  phi- 
losophy of  Kant  and  the  more  earnest  and  living  system 
of  Fries.     He  was,  therefore,  a  two-fold  personage,  and 

1  Critical  History  of  Free  Thought,  p.  249. 


DE    WETTE'S    VIEW    OF   THE    GOSPELS.  247 

it  is  not  an  easy  task  to  harmonize  his  theories.  One 
set  of  his  opinions  was  based  upon  truth,  the  other  on 
beauty.  Religion  has  two  elements,  faith  and  feeling ; 
doctrines  and  aesthetics.  Religion  may  exist  aestheti- 
cally, but  it  can  only  become  vital  in  the  feeling,  or  self- 
consciousness.  Religious  feeling  embraces  three  shades : 
enthusiasm  or  inspiration,  resignation,  and  devotion. 
Every  history  is,  in  a  certain  sense,  symbolical.  It  is 
the  mere  reflection  or  copy  of  the  human  mind  in  its 
activity.  So  are  the  appearance  of  Christ,  his  life,  and 
death,  in  some  degree  symbolical.  In  this  symbolism 
consists  the  character  of  the  Christian  revelation.  Here 
have  appeared  the  eternal  ideas  of  reason  in  their  great- 
est purity  and  fullness ;  and  Rationalism  is  nothing 
more  than  a  philosophical  view  of  the  Christian  revela- 
tion of  faith,  or  the  knowledge  of  the  relations  in  which 
idea  and  symbol  stand  to  each  other  in  Christianity. 
Therefore,  we  must  judge  the  miraculous  accounts  of 
the  evangelists  as  symbols  of  the  ideas  existing  in  the 
early  history  of  Christianity. 

De  Wette  reflects  somewhat  on  the  moral  character 
of  John,  perhaps  without  intention,  when  he  supposes 
him  to  have  written  late  in  life — a  time  when  his  faith 
would  naturally  predominate  over  his  love  of  facts. 
Strauss  couples  De  Wette  with  Vater,  as  having 
placed  upon  a  solid  foundation  the  mythical  explication 
of  the  history  of  the  Bible.1  According  to  De  Wette, 
the  narrator  may  intend  to  write  history,  but  he  ob- 
viously does  it  in  a  poetic  way.  The  first  three  evan- 
gelists betray  a  legendary  and  even  a  mythical  charac- 
ter. This  explains  the  discrepancies  in  their  histories, 
and  also  in  the  discourses  and  doctrines  of  Jesus.  The 
miracle  that  took  place  at  the  baptism  of  Christ  was  a 

1  Life  of  Jesus — Introduction. 


248  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

pure  myth ;  and  the  resurrection  and  reappearance  of 
Christ  have  their  existence  more  in  the  mind  than  in 
history.  With  this  view  of  the  New  Testament,  it  is 
not  surprising  that  the  Old  should  receive  even  more 
rigorous  usage.  The  larger  part  of  the  Pentateuch 
was  supposed  to  be  taken  from  two  old  documents,  the 
Elohistic  and  Jehovistic,  and  was  compiled  somewhere 
near  the  close  of  the  legal  period.  The  five  books,  pur 
porting  to  have  been  written  by  Moses,  are  the  Hebrew 
epic,  and  contain  no  more  truth  than  the  great  epic  of 
the  Greeks.  As  the  Iliad  and  Odyssey  are  the  produc- 
tion of  the  rhapsodists,  so  is  the  Pentateuch,  with  the 
exception  of  the  Decalogue,  the  continuous  and  anony 
mous  work  of  the  priesthood.  Abraham  and  Isaac  are 
equally  fabulous  with  Ulysses  and  Agamemnon.  A 
Canaanitish  Homer  could  have  invented  nothing  better 
than  the  journeys  of  Jacob  and  the  marriage  of  Rebecca. 
The  departure  from  Egypt,  the  forty  years  in  the  wilder- 
ness, the  seventy  elders  at  the  head  of  the  tribes,  and 
the  complaints  of  Aaron  are  each  an  independent  myth. 
The  character  of  myths  is  varied  in  different  books ; 
poetic  in  Genesis,  juridical  in  Exodus,  priestly  in 
Leviticus,  political  in  Numbers,  etymological,  diplo- 
matical,  and  genealogical,  but  seldom  historical,  in  Deu- 
teronomy. 

De  Wette's  theological  novel,  Theodore,  or  the 
Doubter's  Consecration,  1822,  was  designed  to  banish 
the  doubts  of  the  skeptic  by  seeking  refuge  in  the  theol- 
ogy of  feeling.  Tholuck  replied  to  it  in  his  Guido 
and  Julius,  in  which  he  proves  that  a  deep  appreciation 
and  acceptance  of  Christ  by  the  soul  is  the  only  remedy 
for  infidelity.  We  perceive  in  De  Wette  a  continual 
conflict  between  the  longings  of  his  heart  and  the  theo 
logical  creed  to  which  he  attached  himself.     The  lines 


NEANDEB.  249 

written  by  him  just  before  his  death  touching Ly  de- 
clare the  great  failure  of  his  life : 

"  I  lived  in  times  of  doubt  and  strife, 

When  child-like  faith  was  forced  to  yield : 
I  struggled  to  the  end  of  life, 
Alas !  I  did  not  gain  the  field." 

With  the  name  of  the  lamented  Neander  we  hail  the 
morning  light  of  reviving  faith.  He  was  one  of  the 
purest  characters  in  the  history  of  the  modern  church. 
His  influence  was  so  great  as  to  lead  very  many  of  the 
young  men  of  Germany  to  embrace  the  vital  doc- 
trines of  Christianity.  His  father  was  a  Jewish  peddler, 
Emanuel  Mendel,  and  the  boy  was  named  David  at 
circumcision.  Various  forces  co-operated  in  directing 
his  mind  toward  the  Christian  religion ;  of  which  we 
might  mention  the  philosophy  of  Plato,  the  Romantic 
School,  and  above  all,  Schleiermacher's  Discourses  on 
Religion.  When  seventeen  years  of  age  he  was  bap- 
tized and  received  the  combined  name  of  his  sponsors, 
John  Augustus  William  Neander.  In  1810  he  began 
to  lecture  in  the  University  of  Heidelberg,  and  in  1813, 
owing  to  the  publication  of  his  Julian  the  Apostate,  he 
received  a  call  to  Berlin.  He  was  there  brought  into  the 
society  of  Schleiermacher,  Marheineke,  De  Wette,  Fichte, 
Hegel,  Hitter,  Ranke  and  other  celebrated  men.  It  was 
very  significant  of  the  new  life  now  beginning  to  be 
felt,  that  his  lectures  were  numerously  attended.  Even 
Schleiermacher,  his  co-laborer  for  twenty  years  in  the 
theological  faculty,  had  a  limited  circle  of  auditors  com- 
pared  with  the  throngs  who  went  to  hear  Neander. 

His  theological  views  were  more  positive  and  evan- 
gelical than  those  entertained  by  any  of  his  associates. 
He  shared,  with  the  most  orthodox  of  them,  the  opinion 


250  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

that  religion  is  based  upon  feeling.     The   Christian  con- 
sciousness was  the  sum  of  his  theology.   "  By  this  term,71 
said  he,  "  is  designated  the  power  of  the  Christian  faith 
in  the  subjective  life  of   the   single  individual,  in    the 
congregation,  and  in  the  church  generally  ;  a  power  In- 
dependent and  ruling  according  to  its  own   law, — that 
which,  according  to  the  word   of  our   Lord,  must   first 
form  the  leaven  of   every  other  historical  development 
of  mankind."     Neander  was  not  a  man  of  very  strong 
prejudices;  yet   his  disapprobation  of  the    destructive 
nature  of  Rationalism  was  very  decided.     The  reduction 
of  religion  to  intellectualism  received  severe  rebukes  at 
his  hand  on  more  than  one  occasion.     "  I  shall  never 
cease,"  he  declared,  "  to  protest  against  the  one-sided  in- 
tellectualism, that  fanaticism  of  the  understanding,  which 
is  spreading  more   and   more,  and  which  threatens  to 
change  man  into  an  intelligent,  over-wise  beast.     But  at 
the  same  time  I  must  protest  against  that  tendency  which 
would  put  a  stop  to  the  process  of  development  of  the- 
ology ;    which,  in  impatient  haste,  would  anticipate  its 
aim    and   goal,  although    with   an  enthusiasm  for  that 
which    is    raised    above    the  change  of  the   days, — an 
enthusiasm  which  commands    all    respect,  and  in  which 
the    hackneyed    newspaper  categories  of  Progress  and 
Retrogression  are  out  of  the  question." 

Neander's  motto,  "  Pectus  est,  quod  theologum  fecit,' 
unfolds  his  whole  theological  system  and  life-career.  The 
Germans  call  his  creed  "  Pectoralism,"  in  view  of  the  in- 
ner basis  of  his  faith.  With  him,  religion  amounts  to 
nothing  without  Christ.  Nor  must  Christ  be  the  mere 
subject  of  study ;  the  soul  and  its  manifold  affections 
must  embrace  him.  The  barrenness  of  Judaism  is  done 
away  in  him,  and  the  emptiness  of  Rationalistic  criti- 
cism is  successfully  met  by  the  fullness  found  in  Chris- 


NEANDER    AS    AN    AUTHOR.  251 

tiamty.  Sin  is  not  merely  hurtful  and  prejudicial,  "but 
it  induces  guilt  and  danger.  It  can  be  pardoned  only 
through  the  death  and  mediation  of  Christ.  The  illus- 
trations of  devout  service  to  be  found  in  the  history  of 
the  church  should  serve  as  examples  for  succeeding 
times.  Neander  spent  much  of  the  careful  labor  of  his 
life  in  portraying  prominent  characters  ;  for  it  was  his 
opinion  that  individuals  sometimes  combine  the  fea- 
tures of  their  times,  the  virtues  or  the  vices  prevalent ; 
and  that  if  these  individualities  be  clearly  defined  the 
church  is  furnished  with  valuable  lessons  for  centuries. 
The  work  published  when  but  twenty -two  years  of  age 
Julian  the  Apostate,  was  the  beginning  of  a  series  of  simi- 
lar monographs  designed  to  show  the  importance  of  the 
individual  in  history,  and  to  point  out  great  crises  in  the 
religious  life  of  man.  He  subsequently  produced  works 
entitled  St.  Bernard,  Gnosticism,  St.  Chrysostom, 
Tertullian,  History  of  the  Apostolic  Age,  Life  of  Christ, 
and  Memorials  of  Christian  Life.  To  these  may  be  add- 
ed a  few  practical  commentaries,  essays,  and  a  History 
of  Doctrines. 

But  the  great  achievement  of  Neander  was  his 
General  History  of  the  Christian  Religion  and  Church, 
embracing  the  period  from  the  close  of  the  apostolic 
age  to  the  Council  of  Basle  in  1430.  Christianity 
is,  in  his  conception,  not  simply  a  growth  or  de- 
velopment of  man ;  it  is  a  new  power,  a  creation 
of  God,  a  divine  gift  to  the  world.  Therefore  the  his- 
tory of  the  Church  of  Christ  is  the  clear  exhibition  of 
the  divine  strength  of  Christianity ;  it  is  a  school  of 
Christian  experience,  a  voice  of  warning  and  in- 
struction for  all  who  will  hear  it  as  it  echoes  down 
through  the  grand  march  of  centuries.1     The  history  of 

1  History  of  the  Christian  Religion  and  Church.    Preface  to  First  Edition. 

18 


252  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

the  church,  far  from  being  the  scholar's  theme  alone, 
furnishes  nutritious  food  for  the  practical  life  of  all  the 
disciples  of  the  Lord.  If  its  history  be  permitted  to 
exert  its  due  influence  upon  the  world,  we  shall  be- 
hold a  gratifying  and  widespread  improvement  in 
all  things  that  increase  happiness  and  lead  heaven- 
ward. 

It  is  quite  too  late  to  answer  the  charge  against 
Neander's  profundity.  His  achievements  are  his 
best  defense,  and  the  pen  of  censure  is  fast  begin- 
ning to  lose  its  bitterness.  It  is  not  time  for  him  to  be 
fully  appreciated  at  home ;  for,  as  the  beauty  of  the 
landscape  is  dependent  on  the  sun  to  make  it  apparent, 
so  Neander's  character  and  labors  must  wait  for  an  hon- 
orable and  universal  recognition  until  new  evangelical 
light  shall  have  overspread  the  land.  A  century  hence 
he  will  be  loved  as  dearly  by  the  German  people  as  he 
was  by  those  weeping  students  who  gathered  around  his 
grave  to  see  his  face  for  the  last  time.  What  Krum- 
macher  said  on  the  occasion  of  his  burial  will  yet  be  the 
testimony  of  the  church,  whose  history  was  Neander's 
earthly  Eden :  "  One  of  the  noblest  of  the  noble  in  the 
Kingdom  of  God,  a  prince  in  Zion,  the  youngest  of  the 
church  Fathers,  has  departed  from  us." 

Neander's  relation  to  his  times  was  most  important. 
The  various  influences  hitherto  employed  against  Ra- 
tionalism had  proceeded  as  far  toward  its  extinction  as 
it  was  possible  for  them  to  go.  Philosophy  and  doc- 
trinal theology  had  spent  their  efforts.  The  history  of 
the  church  having  always  been  treated  mechanically,  il 
was  now  necessary  that  the  continued  presence  and 
agency  of  Christ  with  his  people  should  be  carefully 
portrayed.  The  progress  of  his  church  needed  to  be 
represented  as  more  than  growth  from  natural  causes, 


NE ANDERS    PERSONAL    APPEARANCE.  *263 

fnch  as  the  force  of  civilization  and  education.  It  was 
accessary  to  show  that  a  high  superintending  Wisdom 
is  directing  its  path,  overcoming  its  difficulties,  and 
leading  it  through  persecution  and  blood  to  ultimate 
triumph.  Neander  rendered  this  important  service. 
He  directed  the  vision  of  the  theologian  to  a  new  field, 
and  became  the  father  of  the  best  church  historians  of 
the  nineteenth  century.  The  child-like  simplicity  of 
his  character  was  beautiful.  Everything  like  vanity 
and  pretense  was  as  foreign  to  him  as  if  he  dwelt  on  a 
different  planet.  A  recent  German  writer  calls  him  a 
"  Protestant  monk  or  saint,  whose  world  was  the  cloister 
of  the  inner  man,  out  of  which  he  worked  and  tausrht 
for  the  good  of  the  church." 

Of  his  remarkable  personal  appearance,  Dr.  Schaff, 
who  enjoyed  his  friendship,  says :  "In  his  outward  ap- 
pearance Neander  was  a  real  curiosity,  especially  in  the 
lecture-room.  Think  of  a  man  of  middle  size,  slender 
frame,  homely  but  interesting  and  benevolent  face,  dark 
and  strongly  Jewish  complexion,  deep-seated,  sparkling 
eyes,  overshadowed  by  an  unusually  strong,  bushy  pair 
of  eyebrows,  black  hair  flowing  in  uncombed  profusion 
over  the  forehead,  an  old-fashioned  coat,  a  white  cravat 
carelessly  tied,  as  often  behind  or  on  one  side  of  the 
neck  as  in  front,  a  shabby  hat  set  aslant,  jack-boots 
reaching  above  the  knee  ;  think  of  him  thus  either  as 
sitting  at  home,  surrounded  by  books  on  the  shelves,  on 
the  table,  on  the  few  chairs,  and  all  over  the  floor;  or 
as  walking  unter  den  Linden,  and  in  the  Thiergarten  of 
Berlin,  leaning  on  the  arm  of  his  sister  Hannchen,  or  a 
faithful  student,  his  eyes  shut  or  looking  up  to  heaven, 
talking  theology  in  the  midst  of  the  noise  and  fashion 
of  the  city,  and  presenting  altogether  a  most  singular 
contrast  to   the   teeming   life    around    him,    stared   at, 


254  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

smiled  at,  wondered  at,  yet  respectfully  greeted  by  all 
who  knew  him  ;  or  as  finally  standing  on  the  rostrum, 
playing  with  a  goose-quill  which  his  amanuensis  had  al- 
ways to  provide ;  constantly  crossing  and  recrossing  his 
feet,  bent  forward,  frequently  sinking  his  head  to  dis- 
charge a  morbid  flow  of  spittle,  and  then  again  sud- 
denly throwing  it  on  high,  especially  when  aroused  to 
polemic  zeal  against  pantheism  and  dead  formalism ;  at 
times  fairly  threatening  to  overturn  the  desk,  and  yet  all 
the  while  pouring  forth  with  the  greatest  earnestness 
and  enthusiasm,  without  any  other  help  than  that  of 
some  illegible  notes,  an  uninterrupted  flow  of  learning 
and  thought  from  the  deep  and  pure  fountain  of  the 
inner  life  ;  and  thus  with  all  the  oddity  of  the  outside,  at 
once  commanding  the  veneration  and  confidence  of 
every  hearer ;  imagine  all  this,  and  you  have  a  picture 
of  Neander,  the  most  original  phenomenon  in  the  liter- 
ary world  of  this  nineteeth  century."  * 

1  Germany — Itt  Univenities,  Theology,  and  Belig-Um,  pp.  269-270. 


CHAPTER    XI. 

THE  REACTION  PRODUCED  BY  STRAUSS'  LD7E  OF  JESUS. 
1835—1848. 

It  is  related  of  Apelles,  that,  after  finishing  his 
pictures,  he  was  in  the  habit  of  hanging  them  in  front 
of  his  studio  and  then  of  concealing  himself  in  order 
to  hear  unseen  the  criticisms  of  the  passers-by.  On  one 
occasion,  when  a  new  picture  was  thus  exposed  to  public 
inspection,  a  shoemaker  stopped  before  it  and  observed 
that  something  was  wrong  about  a  sandal.  After  he 
had  gone  Apelles  saw  the  justice  of  the  objection  and 
corrected  the  fault.  The  next  day,  when  the  shoemaker 
was  passing  again  and  saw  that  much  importance  had 
been  attached  to  his  opinion,  he  ventured  to  criticise  a 
leg,  but  Apeiles  rushed  out  from  behind  the  curtain, 
and,  charging  him  with  being  hypercritical,  told  him 
that  for  the  future  he  would  do  better  to  keep  to  his 
trade.  The  circumstance  gave  rise  to  the  Roman 
proverb — "  Ne  sutor  ultra  crepidam." 

The  day  was  now  near  at  hand  when  the  criticism 
of  the  Scriptures,  as  conducted  by  the  Rationalists, 
would  go  quite  beyond  the  province  of  their  authority 
and  the  bounds  of  moderation.  When  we  read  the  cold, 
deliberate  chapters  of  Ammon,  Eichhorn,  and  Michaelis, 
we  unconsciously  identify  ourselves  with  their  genera- 
tion, and  exclaim,  "  Surely  there  will  never  be  a  step  be 


256  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

yond  this ;  the  knife  can  have  no  edge  for  a  deeper  in- 
cision." As  Neander  toiled  in  his  study,  digging  up 
the  buried  treasures  of  the  past  and  enriching  them 
with  the  John-like  purity  of  his  own  heart  in  order 
that  he  might  faithfully  interpret  the  divine  guidance 
of  the  church,  he  no  doubt  rejoiced  in  the  conviction 
that  the  Rationalists  had  achieved  their  last  great  suc- 
cess, and  that  the  work  before  him  and  those  who 
believed  as  he  did  was  to  be  henceforth  more  con- 
structive than  controversial.  His  co-workers  were  few 
in  number,  but  they  had  pleasing  indications  in  many 
quarters  that  their  labors  would  have  a  triumphant 
issue. 

It  was  very  evident  that,  though  there  was  a  general 
rejection  of  the  doctrine  of  inspiration  in  that  elevated 
sense  which  it  is  the  glory  of  the  American  church  to 
entertain,  there  were  great  numbers  who  had  become 
as  captivated  with  Schleiermacher's  word,  feeling,  as  if 
it  had  been  a  harp-note  from  heaven.  The  people  had 
thought  so  little  about  their  own  hearts  within  the  last 
half  century  that  they  seemed  to  have  forgotten  their 
stewardship  of  the  treasure.  The  whole  land  had  been 
converted  into  a  colossal  thinking  machine.  And  when 
the  German  people  were  told  by  a  stentorian  voice  that 
man  is  emotional  as  well  as  intellectual  they  arose  as 
from  a  long  stupefaction.  So,  when  Schleiermacher  died 
in  1834,  there  were  many  who  said  with  unfeigned 
gratitude,  "  He  is  gone,  but  sweet  be  his  sleep,  for  he 
has  told  us  that  we  have  heart  and  soul.'1 

Three  years  before  Schleiermacher's  death  the  spirit 
of  Hegel  had  taken  its  departure.  These  were  the  two 
men  who,  though  dead,  were  now  speaking  more  author- 
itatively to  the  German  mind  than  all  others.  Schlei- 
ermacher   was    represented   by    men    more    orthodox 


HEGELIAN    SCHOOL.  257 

than  himself,  who  gave  every  assurance  of  leaving  the 
world  far  better  than  they  had  found  it.     Hegel   had 
taught  too  long  and  thoroughly  to  be  without  influence 
after  his  eyes  had  ceased   to  look  upon    his  entranced 
auditors  at  Berlin.     It  was  not  long  after  his  death  that 
his  favorite  theory  of  antagonisms  had  a  literal  fulfill- 
ment in  the  course    adopted  by  the   adherents   to   his 
opinions.     His  most  ardent  disciples  found  it  difficult  to 
tell  what  he  had  believed  definitely,  so  varied  are  the 
expressions   of  his  views  in  the    eighteen   volumes    of 
his  works.     Even  the  same  book  was  interpreted  differ- 
ently.    His  Philosophy  of  Religion  was  twice  edited, 
first  in  a  conservative   sense  by  Marheineke,  and   after- 
ward in   a  revolutionary  light  by  Bruno  Bauer.1    Some 
passages  in  his  History  of  Philosophy  were   written  in 
defense  of  pantheism,  while  his  later  views  have  been 
brought  forth  in  proof  of  his  opposition  to  that  error. 
Thus  variously  interpreted,  and  yet  powerful  in  his  hold 
upon  the  intellectual  classes  of  Germany,  it  was  impossi- 
ble for  his  disciples  to  live  in  harmony.    The  chief  points 
at  issue  were  the  personality  of  God,  the  immortality  of 
the  soul,  and  the  person  of  Christ,     Either  side  might  be 
taken  and  the  position  defended  by  the  master's  own 
words.      The  result  of  this  diversity  of  interpretation 
was  a  schism.     Hegel's  school    was  divided,   after  the 
model  of  the  French   Chambers,  into  three  sections — 
the  Right,  the  Centre,  the   Left.     The  Right   asserted 
the  orthodoxy  of  the  Hegelian  philosophy ;  the  Centre 
held  a  position  corresponding  to  their  name ;  and  the 
Left  were  unmitigated  Rationalists.    The  last  group  were 
true  to  the  skepticism  inherited  from  their  predecessors, 
and  were  radicals  in  church  and  state.     They  rejected 

1  Appleton's  New  Am.  Cyclopaedia  ;  Art.  degtl. 


258  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

the  personality  of  God,  a  future  life,  and  the  credibility 
of  the  Gospel  narratives 

Strauss  was  a  Left  Hegelian,  and  his  Life  of  Jesus 
became  the  creed  of  his  brethren  in  doubt.  He  was  not 
in  perfect  harmony  with  all  their  extremes,  but  he  co 
operated  with  them,  and  gave  them  their  chief  glory. 

The  world  has  seldom  seen  a  literary  venture  more 
remarkable  in  contents  or  in   history  than  this    meteor 
across  the  firmament  of  German  theology.     To  say  that 
it  was  unexpected  is  but  a  faint  expression  of  the  uni 
versal  surprise  occasioned   by  it.     The  Left   Hegelians 
were  a  limited  school  and  the    current  of  theological 
thought  had  been  against  them.     Therefore,  when  the 
Life  of  Jesus  appeared,  it  was  a  bold  thrust  from  an 
arm  thought  to  possess  but  little  strength.    The  author, 
David   Frederic  Strauss,  was  a  young  lecturer  on  the- 
ology in  the  University  of  Tubingen.     He  had  experi- 
enced the  several  shades  of  opinion  prevalent  during 
his  student  life.     Beginning  with  the  Romantic  School, 
lingering  awhile  with  Schleiermacher,  and  finally  passing 
through  the  gate  Beautiful  of  Hegel's   system,  he  tar- 
ried with  that   master  as  "  lord  of  the  hill."     His  stay 
was  not  brief,  like  that  of  Bunyan's  pilgrim.     But  satis- 
fied only  by  making  greater  progress,  the  philosophy  of 
the  great   thinker   became    his   Delectable  Mountains, 
"  beautiful  with    woods,  vineyards,  fruits   of  all   sorts, 
flowers  also,  with  springs  and  fountains,  very  delectable 
to  behold." 

Strauss  was  but  twenty-eight  years  old  when  hia 
cold,  passionless,  and  pungent  piece  of  skeptical  mech- 
anism was  presented  to  the  world.  Who  would  sus- 
pect that  quiet  young  man  of  possessing  so  much  power 
over  the  minds  of  his  countrymen  ?  M.  Quinet,  speak- 
ing of  a  visit  to  him,  said,  "  Beneath  this  mask  of  fatal- 


RECEPTION    OF   STRAUSS'    LIFE    OF   JESUS.  259 

ism  I  find  in  him  a  young  man  full  of  candor,  of  sweet- 
ness and  modesty ;  of  a  spirit  almost  mystical,  and  ap- 
parently saddened  by  the  disturbance  which  he  had  oc- 
casioned." His  book  produced  a  universal  impression 
in  Europe.  It  was,  to  the  moral  sentiment  of  Christen- 
dom, the  earthquake  shock  of  the  nineteenth  century. 
Having  been  multiplied  in  cheap  editions,  it  was  read 
by  students  in  every  university  and  gymnasium,  by 
passengers  on  the  Rhine  boats  and  in  the  mountain 
stages,  and  by  a  great  number  of  private  families.  Even 
school  children,  imitating  the  example  of  their  seniors, 
spent  their  leisure  hours  in  its  perusal.  The  most  ob- 
scure provincial  papers  contained  copious  extracts  from 
it,  and  vied  with  each  other  in  defending  or  opposiug 
its  positions.  Crossing  the  German  frontier,  it  was  pub- 
lished in  complete  and  abridged  forms  in  all  the  princi- 
pal languages  of  Europe.  Even  staid  Scotland,  unable 
to  escape  the  contagion,  issued  a  popular  edition  of  the 
exciting  work. 

Nor  were  the  views  advanced  by  Strauss  in  his  Life 
of  Jesus  less  extraordinary  than  its  very  flattering 
reception.  He  was  diametrically  opposed  to  Ne- 
ander  in  the  latter's  estimate  of  the  ideal  and  histor- 
ical. According  to  Strauss  the  idea  is  the  very  soul  of 
all  that  is  valuable  in  the  past ;  and  history  is  the  gross 
crust  which  envelops  it.  What  is  history  in  its  early 
stages  but  so  many  faint  legends  ?  Happy  are  we  if, 
within  them,  we  can  discover  the  seed-truth.  The  same 
neglect  of  the  movements  of  history  in  their  outward 
form  led  Strauss  into  still  another  tendency  which 
proved  to  be  in  direct  conflict  with  Neander.  The 
latter,  as  we  have  seen,  was  devoted  to  his  theory  of 
the  importance  and  power  of  personality  in  history. 
But  Strauss  rejected  it  as  of  small  moment.     He  attach- 


260  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

ed  great  importance  to  the  issue  involved,  but  regarded 
the  persons  engaged  in  bringing  it  to  pass  as  mere 
machinery. 

This  contempt  of  the  historical  and  the  personal  is 
(he  key  to  Strauss'  work.  The  church,  when  it  con* 
tinued  faithful,  had  always  looked  to  the  Gospels  as  the 
Holy  Sepulchre  of  its  faith,  and  was  ever  ready  to 
make  a  crusade  against  the  power  which  would  wrest  it 
from  her  grasp.  But,  amid  the  conflicts  occasioned  by 
the  growth  of  the  destructive  criticism,  the  Gospels  had 
received  at  its  hands  a  treatment  no  less  severe  than 
had  been  inflicted  upon  the  history  of  the  Old  Testa 
ment.  Many  theories  had  already  been  propounded  by 
the  Rationalists  in  order  to  account  for  them,  but  there 
was  no  general  harmony  among  these  men  either  on 
this  or  any  subject  of  speculation.  Wetstein,  Michaelis, 
and  Eichhorn  were  agreed  that  the  Gospels  were  more 
human  than  divine,  and  the  fate  to  which  all  the  in- 
spired records  were  consigned  by  those  critics  and  their 
sympathizers  has  its  analogy  in  the  treatment  bestowed 
by  vultures  upon  the  carcass  of  the  exhausted  beast  that 
has  fallen  by  the  wayside.  But,  after  all,  the  accounts  of 
the  Evangelists  had  suffered  less  severely  than  any 
other  part  of  the  Scriptures,  and  the  injury  they  had 
sustained  was  owing  more  to  the  attacks  made  on  the 
historical  and  prophetical  portions  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment than  to  any  immediate  invasion.  For  the  Bible  is  a 
unity.  If  but  one  book  be  mutilated  the  whole  organ- 
ism is  disturbed. 

The  contest  havinsr  been  hitherto   connected    with 

o 

other  features  of  revelation  more  than  with  the  person 
of  Christ,  it  was  no  part  of  the  design  of  the  Rational- 
ists to  submit  without  staking  a  great  battle  upon  the 
incarnation    of  the  Messiah.     Let  them  succeed  here, 


THE  MYTHICAL  THEOEY.  261 

and  they  can  rebuild  more  firmly  all  they  have  lost,  but 
if  they  fail,  they  will  only  bring  to  a  more  speedy  ruin 
an  edifice  already  in  decay.  Strauss  undertook  the 
work ;  aud  having  written  for  the  learned  alone,  no  one 
was  more  surprised  than  himself  at  the  popular  success 
of  the  I/ife  of  Jesus. 

According  to  him,  the  explanation  of  the  rnysterioas 
accounts  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  can  be  found  in  the 
theory  of  the  myth.  Strauss  held  that  the  Holy  Land 
was  full  of  notions  concerning  his  speedy  appearance. 
The  people  were  waiting  for  him,  and  were  ready  to 
rhail  his  incarnation  with  rapture.  Their  opinons  con- 
cerning him  were  already  formed,  owing  to  the  expecta- 
tions they  had  inherited  from  their  fathers.  Therefore, 
any  one  who  answered  their  views  would  be  the  Mes- 
siah. There  was  much  in  both  the  character  and  life  of 
Christ  which  approached  their  crude  notions  of  the 
promised  one.  For  this  reason  their  hearts  went  out 
toward  him,  and  they  called  him  "  Jesus."  The  world  was 
already  prepared,  and  since  Christ  best  fitted  it,  he  was 
entitled  to  all  the  honor  of  being  waited  for  and  ac- 
cepted. All  the  prophecies  of  his  incarnation  were 
purely  historical  events.  But  the  Jewish  mind  is 
very  visionary  and  prone  to  allegory.  Consequently, 
when  Christ  appeared  among  the  Jews,  it  was  not  diffi- 
cult to  trace  a  resemblance  between  him  and  other 
marked  personages  in  history. 

Thus  Christ  did  not  organize  the  Church  as  much  as 
the  church  created  him.  He  existed  and  lived  on  earth, 
but  very  different  was  the  real  Jesus  from  that  wonder- 
ful character  described  in  the  Gospels.  The  veritable 
Messiah  was  born  of  humble  parentage,  was  baptized 
by  John,  collected  a  few  disciples,  inveighed  against  the 
Pharisees  and  all  others  who  placed  themselves  in  antag- 


262  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

onism  to  hini,  and  finally  fell  a  victim  to  the  cruelty  of 
his  foes.  Years  passed  by  after  his  death,  and  the  popu- 
lar  imagination  went  wild  with  reports  and  exaggera- 
tions of  the  once  obscure  Nazarene.  Great  as  the  ideas 
of  the  people  were  before  Christ  appeared,  they  were 
infinitely  magnified  during  the  lapse  of  the  thirty  years 
between  his  death  and  the  composition  of  the  Gospels. 
These  narratives  are  consequently  not  a  representation 
of  history,  but  of  morbid  popular  fancies.  The  evan 
gelists  did  not  intend  to  deceive  their  readers ;  their 
picturesque  sketches  were  only  designed  to  clothe  the 
ideal  in  the  garb  of  the  real.  "  Be  not  so  unkind," 
Strauss  says  in  effect,  "  as  to  charge  these  poor  unedu- 
cated men  with  evil  purposes.  They  were  very  unsophis- 
ticated, and  did  not  know  enough  to  have  any  extended 
plan  of  trickery.  They  heard  wonderful  stories  floating 
about,  just  such  as  one  meets  with  in  all  countries  after 
a  prominent  man  has  died  ;  and,  as  they  had  a  little  ca- 
pacity for  using  the  pen,  they  wrote  them  down  to 
the  best  of  their  ability.  Their  writings  are  curious 
but  very  defective,  since  the  authors  were  too  unprac- 
tised in  literary  work  to  perfect  a  master-piece.  How 
little  they  dreamed  of  the  reverence  which  future  gen- 
erations would  pay  them  !  Poor  souls,  they  hardly 
knew  what  they  were  doing.  One  caught  one  story, 
and  his  friend  another ;  and  it  is  a  nice  bit  of  mosaic 
which  we  find  in  their  school-boy  productions.  No 
wonder  their  defenders  are  unable  to  harmonize  their 
accounts.  Let  any  four  men  who  live  among  a  legend- 
loving  people  transcribe  the  traditions  they  hear  from 
the  lips  of  childhood  and  garrulous  old  age,  or  read  in 
the  popular  romances  of  the  day,  and  it  will  surprise 
no  one  that  they  do  not  agree.  How  can  they  tell 
the   same   things   in   the  same  way,  since   the  sources 


INTRODUCTION   TO    STRAUSS'    BOOKS.  263 

of  each  are  so .  different  ?  Nor,  with  only  myths  for 
warp  and  woof,  is  it  at  all  surprising  that  we  have  noth- 
ing more  than  Homeric  exaggerations  when  the  fanciful 
fabric  is  once  woven." 

The  introduction  to  the  Life  of  Jesus  consists  of  an 
#»ssay  on  the  historical  development  of  the  mythical 
theory  Having  stated  its  present  shape  and  great 
value,  it  is  then  applied  to  the  life  of  Christ  in  the  body 
of  the  work.  This  is  the  climax  of  destructive  criti- 
ticism.  Everything  which  Christ  is  reported  by  the 
Evangelists  to  have  said  or  done  shares  the  natural  expla- 
nations of  Strauss.  From  his  very  birth  to  his  ascension, 
his  life  is  no  more  remarkable  than  that  of  many  others 
who  have  takeu  part  in  the  public  events  of  their  times. 

Beginning  with  the  annunciation  and  birth  of  John 
the  Baptist,  Strauss  considers  the  apparition  to  Zacha- 
rias  and  his  consequent  dumbness  as  actual  external 
circumstances,  susceptible  of  a  natural  interpretation. 
Zacharias  had  a  waking  vision  or  ecstasy.  Such  a 
thing  is  not  common,  but  in  the  present  instance,  many 
circumstances  combined  to  produce  an  unusual  state  of 
mind.  The  exciting  causes  were,  first,  the  long- 
cherished  desire  to  have  a  posterity  ;  second,  the  exalted 
vocation  of  administering  in  the  Holy  Place  and  offer- 
ing up  with  the  incense  the  prayers  of  the  people  to 
the  throne  of  Jehovah,  which  seemed  to  Zacharias  to 
foretoken  the  acceptance  of  his  own  prayer;  and 
third,  perhaps  an  exhortation  from  his  wife  as  he  left 
his  house,  similar  to  that  of  Kachel  to  Jacob.  Gen. 
axx.  1.  In  this  highly  excited  state  of  mind,  as  he 
prays  in  the  dimly-lighted  sanctuary,  he  thinks  of  his 
most  ardent  wish,  and  expecting  that  now  or  never  his 
prayer  shall  be  heard,  he  is  prepared  to  discern  a  sign 
of  its  acceptance  in  the  slightest  occurrence.     As  the 


264  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

glimmer  of  the  lamp  falls  upon  the  ascending  cloud  of 
incense,  and  shapes  it  into  varying  forms,  the  priest 
imagines  that  he  perceives  the  figure  of  an  angel.  The 
apparition  at  first  alarms  him,  but  he  soon  regards  it  as  aD 
assurance  from  God  that  his  prayer  is  heard.  No  eooncs 
does  a  transient  doubt  cross  his  mind,  than  the  sensi 
tively  pious  priest  looks  upon  himself  as  sinful  and 
believes  himself  reproved  by  the  angel.  Now,  either 
an  apoplectic  seizure  actually  deprives  him  of  speech, 
which  he  receives  as  the  just  punishment  of  his  incre- 
dulity, until  the  excessive  joy  he  experiences  at  the  cir- 
cumcision of  his  son  restores  the  power  of  utterance—  so 
that  dumbness  is  retained  as  an  external,  physical, 
though  not  miraculous  occurrence — or  the  proceeding  is 
psychologically  understood ;  namely,  that  Zacharias,  in 
accordance  with  a  Jewish  superstition,  for  a  time  de- 
nied himself  the  use  of  the  offending  member.  Reani- 
mated in  other  respects  by  the  extraordinary  event,  the 
priest  returns  home  to  his  wife,  and  she  becomes  a 
second  Sarah.1 

The  original  histories  are  adduced,  and  the  parallels 
fully  drawn  between  them  and  the  gospel  narratives  in 
order  to  show  the  mythical  character  of  the  latter. 
The  birth  of  John  the  Baptist  is  the  mongrel  product 
of  the  Old  Testament  stories  of  the  birth  of  Isaac,  of 
Samson,  and  of  Samuel.  Every  event  related  by  the 
evangelists  is  so  strained  as  to  make  it  analogous  to 
other  occurrences  in  Jewish  history.  The  murder  of 
the  innocents  by  Herod  is  only  a  poetic  plagiarism  of 
the  cruelty  of  Nimrod  and  Pharaoh  ;  the  star  which 
guided  the  shepherds,  a  memory  of  the  star  promised 
in  the  prophecy  of  Balaam ;  Christ  explaining  the 
Bible  when  twelve  years  old,  a  gloss  upon  the  precocity 

1  Life  of  Jesus.     Ch.  I.     American  Edition. 


APPLICATION    OF   THE   MYTHICAL   THEORY.  265 

of  Moses,  Samuel,  and  Solomon ;  the  increase  of  the 
loaves,  a  union  of  the  manna  in  the  wilderness  and  the 
twenty  loaves  with  which  Elisha  fed  the  people ;  water 
changed  into  wine,  a  new  version  of  the  bitter  waters 
made  sweet ;  the  cross,  a  reminder  of  the  brazen  serpent; 
the  scene  in  the  Garden  of  Gethsemane,  the  bloody 
sweat  and  the  agony  on  the  cross,  poor  copies  from 
the  Lamentations  of  Jeremiah ;  and  the  two  thieves, 
the  nailed  hands  and  feet,  the  pierced  side,  the  thirst, 
and  the  last  words  of  Jesus,  are  borrowed  narra- 
tives from  the  sixty-ninth  and  twenty-second  Psalms.1 

The  same  mythical  explanation  is  applied  to  the  con- 
ception and  divine  character  of  Jesus.  By  entertaining 
such  notions  of  him  as  we  find  in  the  gospels  we  dis- 
play a  superstition  worthy  of  the  dim  days  of  pagan 
legendry.  In  the  world  of  mythology  many  great  men 
had  extraordinary  births,  and  were  sons  of  the  gods. 
Jesus  himself  spoke  of  his  heavenly  origin,  and  called 
God  his  Father ;  besides,  his  title  as  Messiah  was  "  Son 
of  God."  From  Matt.  i.  22,  it  is  further  evident  that  the 
passage  of  Isaiah  vii.  14,  was  referred  to  Jesus  by  the 
early  Christian  church.  In  conformity  with  this  pas- 
sage the  belief  prevailed  that  Jesus,  as  the  Messiah, 
should  be  born  of  a  virgin  by  means  of  divine  agency. 
It  was  therefore  taken  for  granted  that  what  was  to  be 
actually  did  occur ;  and  thus  originated  a  philosophical, 
dogmatical  myth  concerning  the  birth  of  Jesus.  But  ac- 
cording to  historical  truth,  Jesus  was  the  offspring  of  an 
ordinary  marriage,  between  Joseph  and  Mary,  which 
maintains  at  once  the  dignity  of  Jesus  and  the  respect 
due  to  his  mother.  The  transfiguration  illustrates 
both  the  natural  and  mythical  methods  of  inter- 
pretation.    It  is  a  reflection  of  the  scene  which  trans- 

1  Of.  Revue  des  Deux  Mondes.     Vol.  16. 


266  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

pired  on  Sinai  at  the  giving  of  the  law.  The  gospel 
account  is  an  Ossianic  fancy  Something  merely  ob- 
jective presented  itself  to  the  disciples,  and  this  ex- 
plains how  an  object  was  perceived  by  several  at  once. 
The j  deceived  themselves,  when  awake,  as  to  what  they 
saw.  That  was  natural,  because  they  were  all  born 
within  the  same  circle  of  ideas,  were  in  the  same  frame 
of  mind,  and  in  the  same  situation.  According  to  this 
opinion,  the  essential  fact  in  the  scene  on  the  mountain 
is  a  secret  interview  which  Jesus  had  concerted,  and, 
with  a  view  to  which,  he  took  with  him  the  three  most 
confidential  of  his  disciples.  Paul  us  does  not  venture 
to  determine  who  the  two  men  were  with  whom  Jesus 
held  this  interview;  Kuinol  conjectures  that  they 
were  secret  adherents  of  the  same  kind  as  Nicodemus ; 
and  according  to  Venturing  they  were  Essenes,  secret 
allies  of  Jesus.  Jesus  prayed  before  these  arrived,  and 
the  disciples,  not  being  invited  to  join,  slept.  For  the 
sleep  noticed  by  Luke,  though  it  were  dreamless,  is 
gladly  retained  in  this  interpretation,  since  a  delusion 
appears  more  probable  in  the  case  of  persons  just  awak- 
ing. On  hearing  strange  voices  talking  with  Jesus, 
they  awake,  and  see  him — who  probably  stood  on  a 
higher  point  of  the  mountain  than  they — enveloped  in 
an  unwonted  brilliancy,  caused  by  the  reflection  of  the 
sun's  rays  from  a  sheet  of  snow.  This  light  falling  on 
Jesus  is  mistaken  by  them  in  the  surprise  of  the 
moment  for  a  supernatural  illumination.  They  per- 
ceive the  two  men  whom,  for  some  unknown  reasons, 
the  drowsy  Peter  and  the  rest  take  for  Moses  and  Elias. 
Their  astonishment  increases  when  they  see  the  two 
strange  individuals  disappear  in  a  bright  morning  cloud 
— which  descends  as  they  are  in  the  act  of  departing — 
and  hear  one  of  them  pronounce  out  of  the  cloud  the 


RESURRECTION    OF    CHRIST.  267 

words,  "  This  is  my  beloved  Son  in  whom  I  am  well 
pleased ;  hear  ye  him."  Under  these  circumstances 
they  unavoidably  regard  this  as  a  voice  from  heaven 

The  resurrection  of  Christ  is  regarded  by  Strauss  as 
a  psychological  necessity  placed  upon  the  disciples,  first 
to  solve  the  contradiction  between  the  ultimate  fate  of 
Jesus  and  their  earlier  opinion  of  him,  and  second  to 
adopt  into  their  idea  of  the  Messiah  the  characteristics 
of  suffering  and  death. 

"  When  once  the  idea  of  a  resurrection  of  Jesus  had 
rbeen  formed  in  this  manner,"  says  Strauss,  "  the  great 
event  could  not  have  been  allowed  to  happen  so 
simply,  but  must  be  surrounded  and  embellished 
with  all  the  pomp  which  the  Jewish  imagination  fur- 
nished. The  chief  ornaments  which  stood  at  command 
for  this  purpose  were  angels ;  hence  these  must  open 
the  grave  of  Jesus  ;  must,  after  he  had  come  forth  from 
it,  keep  watch  in  the  empty  place,  and  deliver  to  the 
women, — who,  because  without  doubt  women  had  the 
first  visions,  must  be  the  first  to  go  to  the  grave, — the 
tidings  of  what  had  happened.  As  it  was  Galilee  where 
Jesus  subsequently  appeared  to  them,  the  journey  of 
the  disciples  thither,  which  was  nothing  else  than  their 
return  home,  somewhat  hastened  by  fear,  was  derived 
from  the  direction  of  an  angel ;  nay,  Jesus  himself  must 
already  before  his  death,  and  as  Matthew  too  zealously 
adds,  once  more  after  the  resurrection  also,  have  en- 
joined this  journey  on  the  disciples.  But  the  farther 
these  narratives  were  propagated  by  tradition,  the  more 
must  the  difference  between  the  locality  of  the  resurrec- 
tion itself  and  that  of  the  appearance  of  the  risen  one 
be  allowed  to  fall  out  of  sight  as  inconvenient ;  and 
since  the  locality  of  the  death  was  not  transferable,  the 
appearances  were  gradually  placed  in  the  same  locality 

19 


268  HISTOKY  of  eatiojstalism. 

as  the  resurrection, — in  Jerusalem,  which,  as  the  more 
brilliant  theatre  and  the  seat  of  the  first  Christian 
church,  was  especially  appropriate  for  them." x 

The  ascension  is  claimed  as  a  myth  founded  upon 
the  Old  Testament  precedents  of  the  translation  of 
Enoch  and  the  ascension  of  Elijah,  and  the  pagan 
apotheosis  of  Hercules  and  Romulus. 

The  last  part  of  Strauss1  work  is  a  dissertation  on 
the  dogmatic  import  of  the  life  of  Jesus.  Here  this 
merciless  critic  tries  to  prove  that,  though  the  belief  of 
the  church  concerning  Christ  be  thus  uprooted  by  the 
theory  of  myths,  nothing  truly  valuable  is  destroyed. 
He  declares  it  his  purpose  "  to  re-establish  dogmati- 
cally that  which  has  been  destroyed  critically."  He 
holds  that  all  his  criticism  is  purely  independent  of 
Christian  faith  ;  for,  "  The  supernatural  birth  of  Christ, 
his  miracles,  his  resurrection  and  ascension,  remain  eter- 
nal truths,  whatever  doubts  may  be  cast  on  their  reality 
as  historical  facts."  Thus,  reliance  is  placed  upon  a 
difference  between  the  import  of  criticism  and  christian 
faith — which  subterfuge  proved  a  broken  reed  when 
the  masses  read  this  mythical  interpretation  of  the  life 
of  the  Founder  of  Christianity.  In  vain  did  Strauss  say, 
in  the  preface  to  his  work,  that  it  was  not  designed  for 
the  laity,  and  that  if  they  read  it,  it  must  be  at  their 
own  hazard.  It  was  published — and  therefore  the 
public  had  a  right  to  demand  an  examination.  Let  him 
who  writes  an  evil  thought  never  be  deceived  by  the 
opinion  that  only  those  will  read  it  who  cannot  be  in 
jured  by  it.  "  What  is  writ,  is  writ ;  "  and  then  it  is 
too  late  to  wish  it  "  worthier." 

But  the  most  remarkable  feature  of  the  work  of 
Strauss  yet  remains  to  be  traced.     It  was  a  compilation, 

1  Life  of  Jesus,  852-3. 


GROUPING    OF    RATIONALISTS.  269 

and  nothing  more.  Having  ransacked  every  skeptical 
writer  on  the  gospel  history,  he  published  their  views 
at  length  in  his  Life  of  Jesus.  He  did  not  make  many 
quotations.  But  the  references  at  the  foot  of  almost 
every  page  declare  plainly  enough  the  pains  he  took  to 
put  in  force  the  incantation  he  had  pronounced  to  all 
skeptical  sprites 

"  Black  spirits  and  white,  red  spirits  and  gray, 
Mingle,  mingle,  mingle  ;  ye  that  mingle  may." 

No  Rationalist  escaped  his  notice.  The  English 
Naturalists  reappeared  with  all  their  original  pretensions. 
Bolingbroke,  Voltaire,  Lessing,  Kant,  De  Maistre,  and 
all  the  representatives  of  skeptical  thought  communed 
in  friendly  society,  regardless  alike  of  disparity  in  par- 
ticular opinions  and  of  difference  in  the  time  when  they 
nourished.  On  this  very  account  M.  Quinet  infers  the 
great  popularity  of  the  enterprise.  Because  it  was  a 
grouping  of  all  heterodox  doctrines  of  the  person  of 
Christ,  the  adherents  of  nationalism  saw  whither  their 
principles  were  leading  them,  and  their  opponents 
learned  more  of  the  desperate  character  of  their  foe  than 
they  had  ever  acquired  from  all  other  sources.  It  was 
a  crystallization  of  the  imputations  and  insults  cast 
upon  the  gospels  for  more  than  seventy-five  years. 
Then,  for  the  first  time,  did  the  votaries  of  error,  mass 
themselves.  It  was  then,  too,  that  the  evangelical 
school  were  first  able  to  count  the  number  of  their 
opponents. 

The  scene  before  the  publication  of  the  Life  of 
Jesus  was  quite  different  from  the  one  presented  sub- 
sequently Formerly  the  nationalists  said  what  they 
chose  about  Christ,  and  they  suffered  little  from  their 
rashness.     But  immediately  after  Strauss  had  issued  his 


270  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

book,  the  attention  of  the  church  was  pi  ofoundly  at- 
tracted toward  the  consideration  of  the  themes  therein 
treated.  The  chureh  seemed  to  say,  "  Strange,  that  I 
have  given  so  little  attention  to  this  great  pillar  of 
Christian  faith ;  now  I  see  what  reward  I  am  receiving 
for  my  neglect.  The  like  shall  never  happen  again. 
No,  I  will  not  only  quench  this  firebrand,  but  I 
will  hurl  back  upon  my  enemies  enough  destructive 
missiles  to  reduce  them  to  a  disorganized  band  of  home- 
less fugitives."  This  resolution  was  not  the  work  of 
idle  excitement,  and  soon  to  be  forgotten.  The  replies 
to  the  Life  of  Jesus  constitute  a  theological  literature. 
They  were  very  numerous,  and  written  from  as  many 
points  of  view  as  there  had  been  theological  schools 
since  the  dawn  of  the  Reformation.  The  first  rejoinder 
came  from  the  most  distinguished  theologian  of  Wur- 
temberg,  Steudel  of  Tubingen.  He  was  superintendent 
of  the  very  school  where  Strauss  was  tutor,  and 
his  work  was  written  bat  a  few  weeks  after  the  issue 
of  the  first  volume  of  the  Life  of  Jesus.  It  discussed 
the  question  whether  Christ's  life  rested  on  a  histori- 
cal or  mythical  basis.  The  conclusion  was  an  uncom- 
promising decision  in  favor  of  the  former  view.  Steudel 
represented  the  old  Lutheran  orthodoxy. 

We  now  meet  with  the  name  of  Hengstenberg, 
whom  Providence  designed  to  be  an  instrument  of  much 
good  to  the  theology  of  the  present  day.  He  proved 
himself  an  unflinching  hero  when  he  dealt  his  first 
blows  from  his  professor's  chair  in  Berlin.  His  utter^ 
ances  soon  acquired  great  importance  wherever  the 
current  controversies  attracted  attention.  He  was  the 
leader  of  the  young  orthodox  school,  and  in  his  newly- 
founded  Evangelical  Church  Gazette,  he  pictured  his 
times  in  the  language  of  desolation.     His  words  were 


REPLIES    TO    STRAUSS.  271 

worth}'  of  the  dark  days  of  Jeremiah.  Adopting  the 
exclamation  of  that  prophet,  he  cried  aloud,  "  Oh  that 
my  head  were  waters,  and  mine  eyes  a  fountain  of  tears, 
that  I  might  weep  day  and  night  for  the  slain  of  the 
daughter  of  my  people !  "  Theologians,  philosophers, 
and  tradesmen  seemed  to  him  to  be  overwhelmed  in 
skepticism.  But  he  had  a  lion's  heart,  and  fought  stead- 
ily for  the  growth  of  the  pure  faith  of  the  olden  time. 
Nor  has  he  grown  tired  of  the  warfare.  He  appears  to 
have  been  born  upon  the  battle-field,  within  sound  of 
♦drum  and  cannon.  He  is  as  much  the  warrior  to-day 
as  when  he  entered  the  lists  against  Strauss  nearly 
thirty  years  ago.  His  opinion  of  his  great  antagonist 
may  be  summed  up  in  his  own  language.  He  says  of 
him  that,  "  He  has  the  heart  of  a  leviathan,  which  is  as 
hard  as  a  stone  and  as  firm  as  the  nether  millstone  ;  he 
assails  the  Lord's  Anointed  with  composure  and  cold 
bloodedness ;  and  not  a  tear  of  pity  flows  from  his 
eyes." 

Harless  and  Hoffman  followed  in  spirited  criticisms 
on  the  Life  of  Jesus.  Tholuck  next  appeared  upon  the 
arena  in  his  Credibility  of  the  Gospel  History.  This 
production  was  somewhat  declamatory  in  style,  but 
that  was  no  barrier  to  its  utility.  It  attacked  Strauss  in 
the  weakest  spot,  namely,  in  his  deductions  against  the 
authenticity  and  apostolic  origin  of  the  gospels. 
Tholuck  defines  a  miracle  to  be  an  event  which  appeal's 
contrary  to  the  course  of  nature,  and  has  a  religious 
origin  and  aim.  He  allows  that  inspiration  is  not  total 
but  partial,  and  that  it  is  but  fair  to  concede  to  his  op- 
ponent the  presence  of  Scriptural  defects,  such  as  mis 
takes  of  memory,  and  errors  in  historical,  chronological, 
and  astronomical  details.  We  must  be  content  to  know 
and  feel  that,  in  the  Bible,  we  find  a  bas's  of  inspiration 


272  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

which  is  none  the  less  substantial  though  surrounded 
by  intruding  weeds,  or  fragments  of  stone  and  mortar. 
But  Tholuck's  work  is  not  a  fair  specimen  of  his  writ- 
ings. Besides  its  literary  defects,  the  author  concedes 
much  more  to  the  Rationalists  here  than  he  is  accus- 
tomed to  do  in  his  many  superior  publications. 

Again  we  meet  with  the  revered  name  of  Neander. 
His  Life  of  Christ  appeared  in  1837.     He  published 
it   not   only  as   a   reply  to   Strauss,  but   as   an   inde- 
pendent treatise  upon  the  person  of  the  Messiah.     He 
announced  himself  as  the  mediator  between  those  bitter 
partisans  who,  on  the  one  side,  would  grant  no  rights 
to  reason,  and  on  the  other,  would  leave  no  space  for 
the  exercise  of  feeling  and  faith.     His  work  stands  in 
the  same  relation  to  criticism  which  Schleiermacher's 
Discourses  occupies  to  dogmas,  and  as  the  latter  appears 
sometimes  to  lean  toward  Rationalism,  so  do  we  find  in 
the  former  traces  of  concession  to  the  destructive  method 
of  criticism.     Neander's  work,  despite  everything  which 
he  grants  to  his  enemies,  was  the  transition-agent  toward 
a  purer  comprehension  of  the  life  of  Christ.     While  we 
lament  that  he  interprets  the  early  life  of  Christ  as  a 
fragment  derived  from  an  evangelical  tradition ;  that  he 
believes  the  influence  of  demons  in  the  gospel  period  sus- 
ceptible of  a  psychological  explanation,  that  the  miracu- 
lous feeding  of  the  five  thousand  is  but  the  multiplica- 
tion and  potentialization  of  substances  already  at  hand, 
that  the  feeding  of  the  four  thousand   is   a   mistaken 
account  of  the  former,  and  that  the  changing  of  the 
water  into  wine  at  Cana  of  Galilee  was  nothing  more 
than   an  increase  of  power  in   the  water,  as  we   find 
sometimes  in  mineral  fluids, — granting  these  and  all  the 
other  interpretations  which  Neander  makes  on  the  score 
of  nature  or  myths,  we  must  attach  an  importance  to 


EEPLIES   TO   STRAUSS.  27b 

Lis  Life  of  Christ  second  only  to  his  History  of  the 
Christian  G Lurch.  One  closes  the  reading  of  his  ac- 
count of  the  Messiah  with  a  profound  impression  that 
the  author  had  a  true  conception  of  the  divinity  and 
authority  of  the  Founder  of  Christianity.  We  cannot 
doubt  his  sympathy  with  those  words  of  Pascal  which 
he  quoted  frequently  with  exquisite  pleasure :  "  En  Jesus 
Christ  toutes  les  contradictions  sont  accordees." 

Ullmann,  in  his  treatise  Historical  or  Mythical,  will 
not  accept  the  alternative  that  the  life  of  Christ  is  all 
mythical  or  all  historical.  He  enumerates  the  philo- 
sophical myth,  the  historical  myth,  mythical  history, 
and  history  with  traditional  parts.  It  is  to  the  last  of 
these  that  he  assigns  the  gospel  history.  He  propounds 
the  dilemma,  whether  the  church  has  conceived  a  poeti- 
cal Christ,  or  whether  Christ  is  the  real  founder  of  the 
church  %  He  accepts  the  latter,  and  invokes  all  history 
in  proof  of  his  argument.  Weisse,  in  his  Gospel  His- 
tory  treated  Philosophically  and  Critically,  dwells  upon 
the  relative  claims  of  the  four  gospels.  At  least  one  of 
the  gospels  is  original  and  the  authority  for  the  rest. 
This  is  Mark's ;  and  it  is  not  mythical,  but  historical 
and  worthy  of  credence.  Matthew  is  a  compilation  of 
a  later  day  ;  and  Luke  and  John  are  of  still  less  impor- 
tance. But  the  miracles  related  by  Mark  are  purely 
natural  events.  Christ's  miraculous  cures  were  owing 
to  his  physical  powers.  His  body  was  a  strong  elec- 
tric battery,  which,  in  his  later  life,  lost  its  power  of 
healing.  Else  he  would  have  saved  himself  from  death. 
His  early  life  is  unadulterated  allegory. 

But  there  were  numerous  writers  against  Strauss, 
among  whom  may  be  mentioned  Schweizer,  Wilke, 
Schaller,  and  Dorner.  Dorner's  History  of  the  Person 
of  Chris4  1839,  was  an  attempt  to  show  the  totality  of 


274  HISiOivl    ui    RATIONALISM. 

Christ  as  a  universal  character.  The  human  concep- 
tion of  species  is  of  a  world  of  fragments,  but  in  Christ 
we  find  them  completely  united.  All  single,  individual 
prototypes  coalesced  in  him.  He  is  the  World-Per- 
sonality. Bruno  Bauer  wrote  his  Criticism  of  tiu 
Synoptical  Gospels  in  reply  to  Strauss,  though  a  few 
years  afterward  he  changed  his  ground  entirely.  His 
position  in  this  work  was  as  mediator  between  reason 
and  revelation.  He  brought  into  the  conflict  concern- 
ing Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus  an  element  of  heated  argu- 
ment, and  egotism,  which  ripened  into  his  subsequent 
antagonism  to  the  supernatural  school.  His  entrance 
upon  this  field  of  strife  may  be  comprehended  by 
Schwartz's  comparison  of  him  with  Carlstadt  and 
Thomas  Munzer,  who  had  lived  in  the  exciting  period 
of  the  Reformation. 

An  enumeration  of  the  titles  of  the  works  which 
appeared  at  frequent  intervals  during  the  ten  years 
succeeding  the  issue  of  Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus,  indi- 
cates that  toward  the  close  of  this  period  the  contro- 
versy was  directed  more  to  the  particular  gospels  than 
to  the  life  of  Christ  as  a  unit.  The  many  theories  ad- 
vanced exceeded  all  the  ordinary  illustrations  of  literary 
fecundity  and  extravagance  in  the  department  of  theol- 
ogy. There  was  no  theologian  of  note  who  did  not 
take  part  in  the  contest.  Pastors  of  obscure  provincial 
churches,  who  did  not  venture  upon  a  complete  life  of 
the  Messiah,  felt  themselves  competent  either  to  origi- 
nate a  new  view  of  one  or  more  of  the  gospels,  or  to 
elaborate  a  borrowed  one.  The  excitement  was  intense. 
There  was  no  evidence  of  system  in  the  rapid  move- 
ment. But  now  that  the  battle  is  over  we  read  the 
philosophy  of  the  whole  conflict.  Strauss,  without  any 
intention  on  his  part,  had  shown  the  church  of  the  pres- 


STKAUSS'    NEW   LIFE   OF   JESUS.  275 

ent  century,  its  weakness  in  failing  to  comprehend  the 
importance  of  the  evangelical  history.  The  numerous 
replies  indicated  a  hopeful  attention  to  the  neglected 
compendium  of  divine  truth.  The  friends  who  rushed 
to  his  aid  declared  by  their  impetuosity  that  their  cause 
would  have  been  better  served  had  Strauss  never 
penned  a  word  about  Christ.  They  saw  their  strong- 
hold in  ruins,  and  looked  with  tearful  eyes  upon  the 
future  of  their  creed.  The  language  which  Strauss  had 
applied  to  his  excited  opponents  upon  the  appearance 
of  his  work  became  severely  appropriate  to  his  own  ad- 
herents, after  that  production  had  been  faithfully 
answered.  "  Their  alarm,"  said  he,  "  was  like  the 
screaming  of  frightened  women  on  seeing  one  of  their 
cooking  utensils  fall  upon  the  floor."  Granting  the 
appositeness  of  the  illustration,  we  must  add  that  the 
alarm  mentioned  by  the  critic  was  of  brief  duration ; 
while  that  of  the  Kationalists  and  their  adherents  is 
like  the  long-standing  despair  of  a  circle  of  chemists, 
whose  laboratory  has  been  entered  through  a  door  left 
open  by  themselves,  their  carefully  prepared  combina- 
tions destroyed,  and  all  their  retorts  and  crucibles 
shattered  into  irreparable  fragments. 

After  a  long  absence  of  twenty-nine  years,  Strauss 
has  again  appeared  as  the  biographer  of  Christ.  In  his 
former  work  he  wrote  for  the  theological  public,  but 
we  are  now  assured  that  he  had  ever  kept  in  mind  a 
purpose  to  do  for  the  masses  what  he  had  achieved  for 
critical  minds.  The  last  fruit  of  his  pen  is  his  Life  of 
Jems  Popularly  Treated,  which,  following  close  upon 
the  issue  of  M.  Kenan's  work,  appeared  in  1864,  in  the 
form  of  a  large  octavo  volume  of  more  than  six  hundred 
pages. 

Strauss  was  induced  to  make  his  second  work  more 


276  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

popular  tb an  the  first,  because  of  the  gross  injustice 
which  the  clergy  had  meted  out  to  him  in  consequence 
of  his  former  labors  to  establish  the  historical  position 
of  Christ.  The  "  guild  "  of  professional  theologians  are 
interested,  he  avers,  in  maintaining  their  own  cause  ; 
of  course,  they  would  not  loose  their  hold  very  willingly. 
The  only  italicized  sentence  in  his  preface  is  a  thrust 
against  this  class,  whom  time  has  in  nowise  led  him  to 
esteem  :  "  He  wJw  wants  to  clear  the  parsons  out  of  the 
church  must  first  clear  miracles  out  of  religion."  The 
spirit  of  the  introduction,  in  which  the  German  writer 
is  always  expected  to  announce  his  opinions  and  give 
the  historical  reasons  therefor,  is  not  materially  different 
from  the  lengthy  one  in  his  Life  of  Jesus.  It  is  divided 
into  three  parts.  The  first  contains  the  important  at- 
tempts which  have  been  made  to  write  the  life  of  Jesus 
and  represent  it  in  its  true  light.  They  have  all  been 
failures.  Hess,  Herder,  Paulus,  Schleiermacher,  Hase, 
Neander,  Ebrard,  Weisse,  Ewald,  Keim,  and  Renan 
must  be  content  to  lie  in  oblivion.  Renan  has  done 
very  well  for  a  Frenchman  ;  and  as  a  work  for  France 
his  book  has  some  merit.  The  second  treats  of  the  gos- 
pels as  sources  of  the  life  of  Jesus.  These  accounts,  not 
being  authentic,  are  not  of  sufficient  weight  to  be  relied 
on.  The  third  part  contains  certain  explanations  neces- 
sary to  a  proper  appreciation  of  the  remaining  portion 
of  the  work.  The  following  language  indicates  the  au- 
thor's unchanged  opinion  on  the  mythical  character  of 
Christ :  "  We  now  know  for  a  certainty  at  least,  what 
Jesus  was  not  and  what  he  did  not  do,  namely,  nothing 
superhuman,  nothing  supernatural ;  it  will,  therefore, 
now  be  the  more  possible  for  us  to  so  far  trace  out  the 
suggestions  of  the  Gospels  touching  the  human  and  nat- 
ural in  him  as  shall  enable  us  to  give  at  least  some  out 
line  of  what  he  was  and  what  he  wanted  to  do." 


STRAUSS'    NEW    LIFE    OF   JESUS.  277 

The  body  of  the  book  is  substantially  an  attempt 
to  show  that  Christ,  as  represented  by  the  Evangelists, 
is  a  mythical  personage.  Such  a  man  lived ;  but  his 
life  is  not  remarkable  ;  it  is  not  what  they  described  it ; 
and  not  very  different  from  the  common  life  of  ordinary 
men.  We  have  first,  an  historical  outline  of  the  life  ol 
Jesus.  Here  Strauss  makes  himself,  and  not  the  Gospel 
narrators,  the  biographer  of  Christ.  Secondly,  we  are 
furnished  with  the  mythical  history  of  Jesus  in  its 
origin  and  growth.  The  people  were  expecting  some 
remarkable  character,  and  they  seized  upon  the  first  one 
who  best  answered  their  notions.  John  is  as  bad  as  his 
compeers.  He  is  utterly  untrustworthy.  The  only 
work  of  the  New  Testament  from  an  immediate  disciple 
is  the  Apocalypse  of  John.  But  this,  too,  is  wholly 
unhistorical.  Adopting  the  opinion  of  the  radical  Ra- 
tionalists, Strauss  holds  that  miracles  are  impossible, 
and  that  if  God  were  to  operate  against  natural  laws 
he  would  be  operating  against  himself.  As  a  specimen 
of  the  method  of  criticism  adopted  to  divest  Christ's 
career  of  everything  miraculous,  we  may  instance 
Strauss'  disposition  of  the  resurrection  of  Christ.  He 
confesses  that  if  he  cannot  show  that  this  is  mythologi- 
cal, his  whole  work  has  been  written  in  vain.  Christ 
did  really  die,  but  his  resurrection  was  a  vision.  His 
disciples  were  excited,  and  believed  they  saw  their 
Master  reappear.  But  it  was  a  great  mistake  on  their 
part.  It  was  only  an  hallucination.  Paul  had  his 
visions  ;  so  did  Peter  and  John  ;  and  so  did  Mary  Mag- 
dalene, who  was  subject  to  nervous  disorders.1 

The  second  life  of  Jesus  has  met  with  a  cold  recep- , 
tion.     The  "  People  of  the  Reformation,"  to  whom  it 

1  New  York  Independent  and  New  York  Christian  Advocate  and  Journal 
-  1864. 


278  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

was  flatteringly  addressed,  prefer  a  more  substantia] 
theology.  The  tide  has  turned  since  1835,  and  no  man 
feels  the  power  of  the  new  current  more  keenly  than 
David  Frederic  Strauss. 

The  Rationalists,  who  gained  nothing  in  the  contro 
versy  concerning  the  first  Life  of  Jesus  by  the  tutor  of 
Tubingen,  were  unfortunate  in  their  organized,  sys- 
tematic, and  well-sustained  effort  to  regain  lost  ground 
We  have  reference  to  the  labors  of  the  Tubingen 
school.  Ferdinand  Christian  Baur  was  its  founder. 
His  works  are  numerous,  and  may  be  divided  into 
two  classes :  doctrinal  and  critical.  But  there  is  con- 
sistency in  all, — and,  varied  as  his  subjects  of  inves- 
tigation are,  they  centre  in  a  common  focus.  Baur 
sought  the  solution  of  the  agitated  question  in  the  apos- 
tolic history  rather  than  in  the  life  of  Christ.  The 
Christianity  about  which  so  much  discussion  is  elicited, 
is,  according  to  him,  not  a  perfect  and  divine  produc- 
tion, but  only  a  vital  force  in  process  of  development. 
This  is  the  principle  which  underlies  the  multifarious 
theories  of  the  Tubingen  school.  In  order  to  have  a 
place  where  to  stand  and  eliminate  the  theory,  the 
epistles  of  Paul  are  chosen.  But  these  are  not  all  au- 
thentic. Hence  a  selection  must  be  made,  and,  of 
course,  only  those  must  be  chosen  which  are  in  harmony 
with  the  supposition  that  Christianity  is  but  a  dormant 
germ.  Consequently,  the  Epistles  to  the  Galatians,  the 
Romans,  and  the  Corinthians  are  favorites.  They  are 
made  to  dispel  the  darkness,  and  settle  the  question. 

In  them  Paul  exposes  the  fact  that  there  were  two 
parties  in  the  early  church,  the  Pauline  and  the  Petrine. 
They  struggled  for  supremacy,  and  the  conflict  was  a 
long  one.  Peter  was  a  thorough  Jew, — and  his  side 
predominated  even  after  the  death  of  the  principal  com 


THE   TUBINGEN    SCHOOL.  279 

batants.  Judaism  was  the  cradle  of  Christianity ;  and 
the  latter  was  only  an  earnest,  restless,  and  reformatory 
branch  of  the  former.  But  it  was  not  an  offshoot  as 
yet,  for  Christianity  was  essentially  Jewish  all  through 
its  first  historic  period.  The  canonical  writings  of  the 
New  Testament,  which  constitute  the  chief  literature 
of  the  first  two  centuries,  are  the  literary  monument  of 
Christianity  while  it  was  yet  undeveloped,  and  unde- 
rtached  from  Judaism.  These  writings  are  the  mediating 
theology  of  those  distant  days.  The  Petrine  party  was 
very  strong,  until  the  middle  of  the  second  century, 
when  it  was  obliged  to  yield  to,  or  rather  harmonize 
with,  the  Pauline. 

Many  causes  contributed  to  bring  the  two  factions 
together.  There  was  an  absence  of  growth  quite  in- 
compatible with  their  respective  strength.  Alone,  they 
were  almost  unable  to  brave  the  storm  of  persecution. 
Finally,  for  the  sake  of  security  and  propagation,  they 
laid  down  their  weapons,  and  united  under  one  banner. 
From  this  union  came  the  subsequent  growth  of  Chris- 
tianity. The  canonical  works  so  much  revered  by  the 
church  had  been  written  in  the  interest  of  one  or  the 
other  of  the  parties.  Since  the  enmity  has  been  de- 
stroyed, their  literary  productions  must  be  consid- 
ered in  the  light  of  history.  The  church  is,  therefore, 
much  mistaken  in  attaching  importance  to  the  Scriptures, 
for  they  were  written  for  a  time-serving  end,  and  are 
quite  unworthy  of  the  worth  which  we  attach  to  them. 

A  numerous  circle  of  disciples  clustered  around 
Baur,  and  they  enjoyed  his  leadership  until  his  recent 
death.  But  the  writings  of  both  the  master  and  his 
school  were  answered  by  the  best  theologians  of  Ger- 
many. Some  of  the  greenest  laurels  worn  by  Thiersch, 
Dorner,  Lechler,  Lange,  Schaff,  Bleek,  Hase,  and  Bun- 


?80  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

sen,  were  won  in  the  contest  with  the  Tubingen  school ; 
and  their  united  labors  constitute  a  compendium  of 
arguments  which  will  not  cease  for  centuries  to  be  of 
inestimable  value  in  the  controversies  of  the  chinch 
concerning  Christ  and  the  divine  origin  of  Christianity. 

The  labors  of  the  Tubingen  school  and  of  Strauss 
are  two  parts  of  the  same  effort  to  destroy  the  divine 
basis  of  Christian  faith.  We  do  not  impugn  the  private 
opinions  of  the  contestants,  but  we  must  judge  them 
by  their  fruits.  They  wrote  and  taught  against  those 
departments  of  truth  which  it  is  necessary  to  preserve 
intact  if  we  would  have  Christianity  continue  a  vital 
power  of  the  soul  and  an  aggressive  principle  in  the 
world.  Objections  will  still  be  urged  against  the  Gospel 
history,  but  it  will  still  be  blessed  by  the  ceaseless 
oversight  and  unfailing  ministrations  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 
Supposing  the  evangelical  accounts  to  be  purely  hu- 
man, we  have  even  then  the  highest  embodiment  of 
truth  in  the  history  of  man.  Herder  says,  "  Have  the 
fishermen  of  Galilee  founded  such  a  history?  Then 
blessed  be  their  memory  that  they  have  founded  it !  " 
With  the  conviction  that  the  writers  of  the  Scriptures 
throughout  were  inspired  men,  and  spake  as  they  were 
moved  by  the  Holy  Spirit,  we  have  a  power  demand- 
ed alike  by  the  cravings  of  the  soul  and  the  as- 
pirations of  the  intellect.  Blessed  with  this  senti- 
ment, the  individual  and  the  church  are  thoroughly 
furnished  unto  every  good  work. 

From  Germany  we  turn  to  France.  The  latter 
country  has  been  the  traditional  purveyor  of  revolu- 
tionary material  for  the  rest  of  the  Continent.  No 
great  popular  movement  west  of  the  Ehine  has  been 
without  its  influence  upon  the  eastern  side.  The  July 
Revolution  of  1830,  which   effected  the  overthrow  of 


STEAUSS'    SYSTEM    OF   DOCTEESTE.  281 

the  Restoration  represented  by  Charles  X.,  set  the  Ger- 
man masses  in  commotion.  They  were  henceforth  rest- 
less, and  ready,  whenever  occasion  offered,  to  overturn 
the  government  and  establish  a  national  constitutional 
basis.  The  Rationalists  were  insurrectionary,  and,  the 
more  rapid  their  decline  in  all  religious  sentiment  the 
more  decided  was  their  opposition  to  constituted  au- 
thorities. Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus,  great  in  its  influence 
apon  theology,  was  equally  powerful  over  the  political 
mind.  Every  new  publication  which  befriended  infidel- 
ity was  not  without  its  support  of  faction  and  dis- 
content. 

In  connection  with  the  revolutionary  tendency, 
Rationalism  assumed  also  a  more  pantheistic,  and  sub- 
sequently a  more  atheistic  form.  The  second  important 
work  of  Strauss,  his  System  of  Doctrine,  was  even  more 
adapted  than  his  first  to  sap  the  foundations  of  faith 
and  social  security.  It  was  the  embodiment  of  all  the 
worst  features  of  the  Hegelian  philosophy.  It  was 
frank  and  bold  in  all  its  statements.  No  man  could 
mistake  a  single  utterance.  In  it  doctrines  are  traced 
to  their  genetic  development,  and  held  to  be  the  lux- 
uriant growth  of  the  seeds  of  error.  The  truths  of 
Christianity  are  surrounded  by  a  halo  to  which  it  is  no 
more  entitled  than  the  sagas  of  the  Northmen.  The 
old  dogma  was  born  of  prejudice  and  error,  hence  the 
modern  conception  of  it  is  sheer  illusion.  Faith  and 
science  are  irreconcilable  foes,  for  faith  is  the  perversion, 
and  science  the  development  of  human  nature.  Be- 
lieving and  knowing,  religion  and  philosophy,  are  born 
antagonists,  and  man  can  make  no  rapid  progress  if  he 
grovel  in  the  errors  of  faith.  The  personality  of  God 
is  not  that  of  the  individual  but  of  the  universal.  The 
pantheism  of  Spinoza  is   the   best   solution  of  God'9 


282  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

existence ;  "  for,"  says  Strauss,  "  God  is  not  the  per- 
sonal, but  the  infinite  personifying  of  himself." 

The  oracular  responses  of  Feuerbach1  were  a  step 
beyond  even  this  skeptical  usurpation.  Religion  is 
mans  conduct  to  himself.  Man,  from  time  immemo- 
rial, has  been  buried  in  self-love,  and  become  so  far 
carried  away  by  it  that  his  religion  is  now  one  mon- 
strous hallucination.  Religion  springs  not  from  his  in- 
tellect but  from  his  imagination.  He  wishes  to  get  to 
heaven  ;  he  desires  to  be  comfortable  ;  therefore  he  be- 
ieves.  He  will  put  himself  to  no  little  trouble  to  pro- 
pitiate the  favor  of  one  whom  he  considers  divine. 
Here  is  the  mystery  of  all  sacrifices.  They  are  offered 
by  all  people  from  the  mere  inner  force  of  abject  ego- 
tism. God  has  no  absolute  existence  whatever.  Chris- 
tianity needs  to  be  attacked  historically.  Its  chief  ele- 
ments are  Judaism  and  paganism.  That  it  is  a  collec- 
tion of  absurdities,  corruptions,  and  prejudices,  can  be 
perceived  on  its  very  face.  But  still  man  needs  re- 
ligion, though  he  can  only  gain  it  either  by  rejecting 
Christianity  altogether  or  purifying  it  from  its  thick 
envelope  of  dross. 

The  Halle  Year-Books,  published  1838-42,  were 
the  principal  organ  of  the  new  atheistic  doctrines. 
They  commenced  with  the  laudation  of  Strauss,  then 
passed  over  into  the  service  of  Feuerbach,  and  finally 
3erved  the  cause  of  Bruno  Baur  and  his  fanatical  ad- 
herents. They  were  under  the  chief  editorship  of  Ruge; 
and,  being  popular  and  youthful  in  style,  they  wielded 
an  unbounded  influence  on  the  dissatisfied  and  skeptical 
classes.  They  broke  through  all  the  restraints  of  reli- 
gion, and  propagated  the  wildest  perversions  of  Hegel's 
opinions.  Though  short-lived,  they  gained  an  au- 
thority not  often  enjoyed  by  a  periodical.     They  werf 

1  In  Wesen  des  Chrhtenlhums,  Leipsic,  1841. 


RATIONALISTIC    ORGANIZATIONS.  283 

factious  in  the  extreme,  and  became  one  of  the  principal 
agents  in  effecting  the  Revolution  of  1848.  They 
breathed  mildew  on  everything  stable  in  government 
and  sacred  in  religion.  But,  Samson-like,  they  fell  amid 
the  ruin  which  they  inflicted  upon  others. 

Quite  a  new  form  of  Rationalism  was  then  pre- 
sented in  the  popular  conventions  of  the  Protestant 
Briends.  These  individuals  held  that  by  a  return  to 
the  spirit  of  the  Reformation,  Germany  would  be  en- 
dowed with  a  new  and  living  energy.  But  it  must  not 
be  the  Reformation  as  the  church  would  have  us  under- 
stand it.  It  must  be  an  impulse  and  spirit,  not  an  out- 
ward attachment  to  form  and  compulsory  authority. 
They  were  popularly  called  Friends  of  Light,  and  em- 
braced all  the  schools  of  Rationalists  throughout  the 
land.  Their  convocation  was  the  parliament  of  German 
infidelity.  Professing  adherence  to  some  of  the  doc- 
trines of  Christianity,  they  so  glossed  them  that  even 
the  atheist  could  be  a  member  without  violating  his 
principles. 

Their  founder  was  Pastor  Uhlich,  who,  in  company 
with  sixteen  friends,  held  the  first  meeting  at  Gnadau, 
in  July,  1841.  The  second  convention  met  at  Halle, 
and  was  numerously  attended  by  clergymen,  professors, 
and '  laymen  of  every  class  of  society.  The  session  at 
Kothen,  in  1844,  was  a  great  popular  assembly.  It  was 
addressed  by  Pastor  Wislicenus,  of  Halle,  whose  lec- 
ture was  subsequently  issued  as  a  reply  to  his  antag- 
onists, under  the  title  of  Whether  Scriptures  or  Spirit  ? 
Not  the  letter,  but  the  spirit,  is  the  ground  of  true  re- 
ligion. The  spirit  permeates  humanity,  and  hence  there 
L3  no  occasion  for  the  observance  of  the  law.  The  spirit 
comes  with  its  own  law ;  it  is  a  law  in  itself.  The 
Evangelical  church  stands  safe  only  when  resting  upoD 

20 


284  HISTOEY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

freed  oin.  The  glory  of  trie  church  is  the  absolute  free- 
dom of  its  members.  The  Scriptures  are  very  good  in 
their  way.  They  are  a  witness  of  the  faith  of  the  first 
times,  but  were  never  intended  for  these  cultivated 
days.  The  church  is  freed  from  the  exterior  law  and 
elevated  to  the  inner  law  of  freedom. 

Guericke,  the  church  historian,  called  attention  to 
Wislicenus  in  the  Evangelical  Church  Gazette.  Great 
surprise  was  manifested  at  once,  and  the  sober  mind  of 
the  nation  became  aroused  to  a  sense  of  the  danger  now 
threatening  the  foundations  of  faith.  In  a  short  time 
the  Saxon  decree  was  issued  against  all  assemblies 
which  called  in  question  the  Augsburg  Confession. 
The  following  month,  August,  1845,  the  Prussian 
cabinet-order  appeared,  prohibiting  all  convocations  of 
the  Friends  of  Light.  Protests  appeared  against  Wis- 
licenus and  his  followers,  which  were  followed  by 
counter-protests  signed  indiscriminately  by  all  classes. 

Another  popular  development  of  Rationalism  oc- 
curred in  Kouigsberg,  in  1845.  Pastor  Rupp  attacked 
the  Athanasian  symbol  in  his  own  pulpit,  whereupon 
he  was  ejected  by  the  consistory.  He  collected  an  in- 
dependent congregation;  and  thus  arose  those  Free 
Congregations,  which  contributed  equally  to  the  Ra- 
tionalistic and  revolutionary  movements.  Appearing 
in  other  parts  of  Germany,  they  became  a  formidable 
opponent  of  the  church.  While  they  held  that  the 
Scriptures  were  their  rule  of  faith  in  the  unity  of  God, 
they  threw  off  their  authority  and  that  of  all  symboU, 
They  adopted  baptism  and  the  Lord's  Supper,  and  pro- 
fessed allegiance  to  the  civil  power.  But  their  influence 
was  against  the  government,  and  their  two  sacraments 
were  odious  corruptions.  Their  form  of  baptism  is 
enough  to  determine  their  religious  sentiment :  "  I  bap 


REVOLUTIONARY    RATIONALISTS.  285 

tize  thee  after  the  manner  of  the  old  apostolic  baptism, 
that  Jesus  is  the  Christ ;  I  anoint  thy  head  with  water 
as  a  sign  that  thy  soul  remains  pure,  pure  as  the  water 
that  runs  down  the  mountain  side ;  and  as  the  water 
rises  to  heaven  and  then  returns  to  the  earth,  so  may 
you  be  continually  mindful  of  your  heavenly  home." 
Xheir  convocations  were  finally  restricted  by  the  civil 
authority.  The  supreme  church  council  issued  an  ex- 
communicatory  order  against  them ;  the  police  broke 
up  their  meetings ;  and  forty  of  the  Free  Congregations 
were  closed  in  Prussia  alone. 

The  leaders  of  the  Revolution  of  1848  were  the 
organizers  of  these  popular  independent  movements. 
When  the  people  had  gained  the  upper  hand  of  their 
rulers,  their  very  first  action  was  to  select  the  destroyers 
of  their  faith  as  their  political  champions  and  represent- 
atives. It  was,  therefore,  a  great  triumph  for  those  fana- 
tical humanists  to  find  themselves  seated  in  the  national 
parliaments  of  Frankfort  and  Berlin,  and,  wherever  the 
revolution  extended,  to  be  the  leaders  of  the  excited 
masses. 

What  could  be  expected  from  a  revolution  con- 
ducted by  such  men  as  Wislicenus,  Blum,  Uhlich,  Baltz- 
er,  Carl  Schwartz  and  their  adherents  ?  It  was  a  total 
failure.  And  when  the  restoration  was  completed  in 
1849,  the  reaction  against  Rationalism  became  so  de- 
cided that  the  leaders  had  reason  to  tremble  for  their 
lives.  The  people  were  profoundly  disgusted  with  a  skep- 
ticism which  could  produce  no  better  fruits  than  this 
one  had  matured.  The  indignation  was  even  more  in- 
tense than  that  toward  French  infidelity  during  the  su- 
premacy of  Napoleon  over  the  German  States.  In  the 
latter  case  the  people  were  disgusted  with  the  efforts  of 
foieign  skepticism,  but  in  the  former,  they  saw  and  felt 


286  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  sore  evils  of  domestic  Rationalism.  Religious  e»ror 
had  led  them  from  peace  and  quiet  into  a  dream-land. 
When  the  waking  moment  came,  and  the  deception  be- 
came apparent,  the  surprise  at  the  delusion  was  over- 
whelming. 

The  doctrinal  form  of  Rationalism  had  been  arrested 
by  Schleiermacher  and  his  noble  band  of  followers.  Its 
exegetical  prestige  had  been  destroyed  by  the  replies  to 
the  Life  of  Jesus.  And,  as  if  to  make  its  defeat  as 
humiliating  as  possible,  the  last  blow  was  self-inflicted. 
It  was  the  Revolution  of  1848,  and  its  consequent  fail- 
ure, which  annihilated  the  political  strength  of  Ger- 
man Rationalism.  There  is  a  God  in  history.  And 
though  one  generation  may  fail  to  perceive  the  bright- 
ness of  his  presence,  the  following  one  may  be  favored 
with  the  vision.  No  skeptic  should  forget  that  the  real 
philosophy  of  history  is  the  march  of  Providence 
through  the  ages.  Rut  the  infidel  is  the  worst  readei 
of  history.  The  light  shines,  but  he  turns  away  from 
it.     Or,  as  Coleridge  expresses  it : 

"  The  owlet  Atheism, 
Sailing  on  obscure  wings  across  the  noon, 
Drops  his  blue-fringed  lids,  and    shuts  them  close ; 
And,  hooting  at  the  glorious  sun  in  Heaven, 
Cries  out,  '  Where  is  it  ? '  " 

There  is  a  deep  principle  underlying  not  only  the  mis- 
carriage of  the  Revolution  of  1848,  but  of  all  the  popular 
movements  toward  independence  which  occur  at  a  time 
when  the  people  are  involved  in.  religious  doubt.  It  is  the 
spiritual  status  of  a  nation  which  commonly  determines 
its  love  of  law  and  order.  A  population  adhering  to 
an  evangelical  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures  can 
be  forced  to  revolution  only  by  evil  and  ambitious 
leaders,  or  by  persistent  oppression  on  the  part  of  their 


SKEPTICISM    NATURALLY    RE  VOLUTION  ARX .  287 

rulers.  The  tardy  movement  of  the  American  Colonies 
toward  their  revolt  against  the  British  Government  be- 
trayed a  great  unwillingness  to  inaugurate  the  struggle. 
At  the  beginning,  the  conflict  was  not  designed  to  be 
a  revolution  but  only  a  judicious  expedient  for  the  im- 
provement of  the  colonial  laws.1  Wise  rulers,  gov- 
erning for  the  best  interests  of  their  country,  have  gen- 
erally found  that  the  most  discontented  of  their  sub- 
jects are  the  most  skeptical.  Infidelity  and  error 
have  systematically  arrayed  themselves  against  civil 
authority.  This  infidelity  does  not  always  assume  the 
same  type  ;  for,  while  in  Germany  it  was  a  general 
disbelief  in  the  authenticity  of  the  Scriptures,  in 
France  it  was  the  rejection  of  the  existence  of  God  and 
of  the  immortality  of  the  soul.  Even  Robespierre  tes- 
tified before  the  French  National  Convention  of  1794, 
that  "  the  idea  of  a  supreme  Being  and  of  the  immortality 
of  the  soul,  was  a  continual  call  to  justice,  and  that  no 
nation  could  succeed  without  the  recognition  of  these 
truths."  A  revolution  in  Christendom,  which  has  its 
basis  in  the  skeptical  nature  of  man,  or  in  an  anti-scrip- 
tural idea,  may  succeed  for  a  while,  but  it  must  even 
tually  fail ;  because,  like  a  vessel  without  compass,  chart, 
or  star,  it  lacks  the  cardinal  elements  and  safeguards  of 
progress  and  security. 

1  The  hesitation  to  become  independent  was  very  decided,  even  as  late 
•**>  Jnly,  1775. — Bancroft,  History  of  the  United  States.  Vol.  8  :  pp.  55-6. 


CHAPTER    XII. 

THE  EVANGELICAL   SCHOOL.    ITS  OPINIONS  AND  PRESENT 
PROSPECTS. 

There  is  a  group  of  theologians  who  deserve  to 
stand  side  by  side  with  the  immediate  opponents  of 
Strauss  and  his  disciples.  We  mean  the  Mediation  or 
Evangelical  School.  They  represent  the  advance  of 
German  theology  from  Rationalism  to  positive  ortho* 
doxy.  Beginning  with  able  and  irrefutable  arguments 
for  the  Evangelists,  they  have  extended  their  discussions 
to  other  important  branches  of  Scriptural  defence.  As 
a  consequence,  they  have  built  up  a  valuable  apologetic 
literature  which  will  occupy  a  prominent  place  in  the 
theology  of  the  church. 

But,  in  order  to  portray  the  character  of  the  Evan- 
gelical School,  we  shall  need  to  dwell  upon  certain 
members  in  particular.1 

Not  least  in  honor  and  achievement  is  the  late  Kan 
Ullmann.  He  contributed  to  the  Studien  und  Kritifcen, 
a  quarterly  established  by  himself  and  Umbreit,  at. 
article  on  the  sinlessness  of  Christ,  which  he  subsequent- 
ly elaborated  into  a  volume.     One  of  the  most  original 

1  For  accounts  of  the  later  theologians  of  Germany,  consult  Schaff, 
Germany :  Its  Universities,  Theology  and  Religion.  Phila.,  1857.  Also, 
Schwarz,  Oeschichte  der  Neuesten  Theologie,  Leipzig,  Dritte  Ausgabe, 
1864. 


KARL    UUMAKN.  289 

of  his  productions  is  his  Essence  of  Christianity,  which 
placed  "  hiin  in  the  centre  of  the  Mediation  theology.'' 
He  holds  with  Schleierrnacher,  that  Christianity  is  not  as 
much  doctrine  as  vitality,  and  that  it  possesses  the  cre- 
ative and  organizing  power  of  religion.  Christianity  is 
both  divine  and  human ;  divine  in  its  origin  and  essence, 
but  human  in  its  development  and  fulfillment.  With- 
out the  person  of  Christ  to  stand  in  the  very  focus  of 
Christianity,  the  latter  becomes  void  and  no  more  than 
any  moral  religion.  We  can  have  no  proper  conception 
of  Christianity  apart  from  its  founder,  for  its  whole  es- 
sence exists  in  him.  Christianity  is  Christ  developing 
himself  in  humanity.  Christ  is  God-man  in  so  far  as  he 
represents  in  his  own  person  the  perfect  unity  and  iu- 
terpenetration  of  the  human  and  divine.  Christianity 
is  that  religion  which  neither  deifies  nor  destroys  nature. 
Without  considering  it  essential  to  prove  the  facts  of 
Christ's  life,  Ullmann  showed  that  Christ,  in  the  divine 
character  which  we  attach  to  him,  was  necessary  to 
Christianity  just  as  the  pillars  are  to  the  superincum- 
bent edifice.  The  effect  of  this  argument  was  most  sal- 
utary, for  it  was  so  well  timed  that  it  could  not  be  other- 
wise. There  were  two  things  to  be  established  concern- 
ing  Christ.  One  was  the  verity  of  the  Gospel  accounts 
of  him ;  the  other  was  Christ  as  a  necessity  for  man's 
faith,  the  world's  progress,  and  human  salvation.  The 
former  having  been  treated  by  other  hands,  Ullmann  un- 
dertook the  latter  and  triumphed.  He  is  one  of  the 
most  pleasing  of  the  German  theologians.  Partaking 
of  the  warm  southern  temperament — for  he  was  a  Ba- 
varian by  birth — he  wrote  in  that  easy,  natural,  and 
earnest  style  which  renders  him  a  popular  writer  not  only 
in  his  own  language  but  when  translated  into  foreign 
tongues. 


290  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM 

We  find  in  Corner  one  of  the  most  acute  speculative 
theologians  produced  by  the  later  Protestant  church. 
His  style  is  as  complex  as  Ullmann's  is  simple.  It  is  amu- 
sing that,  in  one  place,  he  even  enters  into  a  justification 
of  his  technical  and  abstruse  writing.  Applying  him- 
self to  dogmatic  investigations,  the  fruit  of  his  labor  is 
his  Doctrine  of  the  Person  of  Christ.  Christianity  was 
the  world's  great  want,  and  all  the  religions  of  the  nat- 
ural man  could  not  supply  its  place.  But  Christianity 
is  vague  unless  the  question  be  settled  concerning  the 
person  of  Christ.  Here  is  the  battle-ground  where 
Christianity  and  reason  must  meet  and  decide  the 
great  issue.  Hence  Dorner  passes  by  the  personal 
ministry  and  history  of  Christ  on  earth  and  attempts 
the  proper  mode  of  construing  his  person.  The  Per- 
son of  Christ  is,  in  the  trials  and  triumphs  of  individ- 
"  uals  and  the  church,  the  central  point  of  the  Christian 
religion.  He  is  the  perfect  Lawgiver,  and  also  the 
Judge  of  the  world.  He  controls  the  universe.  Here 
he  communicates  the  forgiveness  of  sins  and  the  Holy 
Ghost,  and  in  heaven,  eternal  felicity.  The  happiness 
of  heaven  is  formed  by  perfect  fellowship  with  his  per- 
son. He  has  left  his  followers  only  in  appearance,  for, 
wherever  two  or  three  are  assembled  in  his  name,  there 
he  is  in  the  midst  of  them.  He  is  with  his  own  always, 
even  to  the  end  of  the  world.  To  know  Christ  in  his 
nearness  belongs  to  the  Christian  worship ;  and  this  in- 
stitution is  appointed  for  the  church  as  the  highest 
means  for  the  enjoyment  of  his  nearness.1 

According  to  Dorner,  heathendom  longed  for  the 
apotheosis  of  human  nature.  Judaism  sought  the  fulfill* 
ment  of  the  revelation  not  completed  by  the  law,  and 

1  Doctrine  of  Person  of  Christ  (Clark's  Foreign  Theologies      Library 
VI— VIII). 


DORNERS    SINLESSNESS    OF    CHRIST.  291 

strained  after  the  love  of  God  as  the  consummation  of 
the  holy  law.  All  these  wants  are  met  in  Christ.  He 
is  the  innermost  revelation  of  the  mystery,  and  the  full- 
est condescension  of  God.  For  God  has  in  Christ  be- 
come man.  Here  is  the  point  of  unity  between  God  and 
the  world.  But  Christ  did  not  appear  in  order  to  be  the 
Son  of  God,  as  if  this  were  the  ultimate  end ;  but  the 
ultimate  end  was  the  glorifying  of  man,  and  therewith 
of  God,  in  and  through  him.  He  is  officially  God's 
son.1 

Was  Christ  possessed  of  sinless  perfection  ?  In  both 
a  physical  and  ethical  point  of  view  he  was  not  abso- 
lutely complete  from  the  first.  He  learned  obedience. 
He  grew  in  favor,  not  only  with  men  but  with  God. 
Growth  points  backward  to  previous  deficiency,  or, 
what  is  the  same  thing,  forward  to  the  absolute  goal 
which  the  reality  approaches  only  by  degrees.  But  de- 
ficiency in  entire  perfection  is  not  sinfulness,  for  then 
all  real  humanity  and  sinfulness  would  be  identical. 
Christ's  temptations  are  explainable  on  this  wise :  he 
had  a  real  moral  task,  not  only  external  to  himself, 
but  in  himself,  which  could  not  be  solved  at  the  begin- 
ning if  he  was  to  be  like  us.  There  was  no  disorder  in 
him,  but  there  were  disorder  and  sin  without  him, 
which  occasioned  him  the  contests,  temptations,  and  suf- 
ferings that  filled  his  official  life.  These  later  conflicts 
were  only  assigned  him  because  he  remained  the  pure 
One,  and  had  become  morally  harmonious  in  the  midst 
of  moral  anarchy.  But  they  were  still  inward  and  per 
aonal  struggles ;  for  he  was  to  introduce  the  power  or 
his  harmony  and  of  his  sufferings,  in  order  to  overcome 
the  disharmony  in  the  world.  He,  the  righteous  one, 
must,  by  suffering,  take  upon  himself  disorder  and  dis- 

1  Doctrine  of  Person  of  Christ,  Vol.  1,  pp  80-81. 


292  history  of  rationalism. 

harmony,  must  live  through  it  and  taste  it,  in  order  to 
establish  a  power  which  is  not  only  harmonious  in  itself, 
but  so  potent  in  harmony  as  to  take  the  disharmony  into 
itself,  master  it,  and  transform  it  into  harmony.  Christ 
was  perfect  man  in  growth  and  progress,  in  his 
temptations  and  conflicts,  but  without  any  historical 
trace  of  a  flaw  or  blemish  in  his  life.  He  was  in  all 
points  made  like  us,  without  being  necessitated  to  be- 
come like  us  as  sinners.  For,  sin  is  the  negation  of  the 
truly  human.  He  laid  claim  to  no  exceptional  law  for 
himself  as  a  privileged  individual,  but  subjected  himself 
to  the  universal  human  moral  law.  With  this  he  was 
satisfied,  and  he  fulfilled  it  in  its  purity,  depth,  and  com- 
pleteness.  He  knew  nothing  of  a  super-moral  religious 
genius,  and  would  have  nothing  to  do  with  it.  His  reli- 
gion is  moral ;  his  morality,  religion.1 

The  name  with  which  we  are  most  familiar  is  the 
devout  and  laborious  Tholuck.  He  generally  takes 
higher  ground  than  many  of  the  Mediation-theologians. 
But  he  is  sometimes  at  variance  with  evangelical  senti- 
ment. Inspiration,  according  to  him,  is  not  real  and  to- 
tal, but  only  partial,  and  is  to  be  determined  in  reference 
to  the  truths  necessary  to  salvation.  While  there  are 
many  mistakes  of  memory,  false  citations,  errors  in  his- 
torical, chronological,  geographical,  and  astronomical 
detail,  these  need  not  depreciate  our  general  estimate  of 
inspiration.  The  Scriptures  have  a  kernel  and  a  shell. 
Upon  the  former  there  is  the  positive  and  direct  impress 
of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  but  upon  the  latter  it  is  indirect 
and  relative. 

In  merely  stating  Tholuck's  definitions,  however,  we 
do  not  measure  out  justice  to  him.  He  must  not  be 
tested  by  any  special  department  of  labor,  but  by  the 

1  American  Presb.  and  Theolog.  Review,  January,  1863. 


THOLUCK  AS  AN  AUTHOR.  293 

spirit  and  totality  of  his  service.  In  this  light  he  is  a 
remarkable  personage,  and  his  work  is  entitled  to  our 
highest  eulogium.  With  him,  Christ  is  not  merely  a 
person  to  be  apprehended  by  the  mind,  but  a  Saviour  to 
be  received  into  the  heart  and  henceforth  to  be  a  living 
power  of  the  soul.  He  must  be  accepted  by  Christian 
faith,  and  the  heart  must  undergo  the  transforming 
power  of  his  Spirit.  Without  this  preparation,  all  prog- 
ress in  science  is  but  the  worship  of  nature,  and  man, 
at  the  close  of  life,  looks  back  upon  a  path  of  error 
and  forth  into  a  world  of  darkness. 

"  Tholuck  has  this  characteristic,"  says  one  of  his 
countrymen,  "  he  cannot  be  classified ;  he  belongs  to  no 
particular  theological  direction,  because  he  belongs  to 
all.''  This  estimate  is  strictly  true.  He  has  gained  his 
greenest  laurels  in  exegesis ;  and  his  commentaries  on 
Psalms,  the  Sermon  on  the  Mount,  Gospel  of  John,  and 
Epistles  to  the  Romans  and  Hebrews,  have  already 
taken  their  places  in  the  theological  libraries  of  English 
and  American  divines.  But  he  has  asked  liimself  the 
question,  "  What  can  I  do  to  lessen  the  hold  which 
Rationalism  has  upon  my  country  ? "  And  he  has 
given  the  answer  by  his  life-career.  All  his  productions 
centre  in  that  thought,  and  it  is  not  the  least  of  his 
service  that  he  has  written  sketches  of  the  old  Reforma- 
tion theologians,  as  an  incentive  to  the  restoration  of 
their  spirit.  It  is  not  easy  to  estimate  the  benefit 
which  his  Sin  and  Redemption  has  conferred  upon  the 
young  men  of  Germany.  The  Baron  von  Kottwitz  is 
ehe  real  personage  represented  by  the  patriarch.  Let 
us  hear  this  venerable  saint  as  he  stands  upon  the  bor- 
der of  the  grave  and  anticipates  a  bright  future  for  his 
loved  church  and  country.  His  words  are  the  key  to 
Tholuck's  life,  and  reveal  the  bright  hope  which  burned 


21)4  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

witliin  him  ever  since  the  day  when  he  was  welcomed 
to  Halle  by  the  hisses  and  threats  of  the  Rationalists. 

The  aged  man  says :  "  The  greater  the  crisis  the 
more  needful  is  it  to  unite  the  wisdom  of  the  serpent 
with  the  simplicity  of  the  dove.  I  therefore  address 
you  as  such  an  one  who,  perhaps,  will  soon  be  engaged 
at  the  university  as  one  of  the  instruments  employed 
by  God  in  that  important  period.  The  work  of  God's 
spirit  is  greater  than  either  you  or  the  majority  can 
estimate.  A  great  resurrection  morning  has  dawned. 
Hundreds  of  youths  on  all  sides  have,  been  awakened 
by  the  Spirit  of  God.  Everywhere  true  believers  are 
coming  into  closer  union.  Science  herself  is  becoming 
again  the  handmaid  and  friend  of  the  Crucified.  Civil 
governments,  also,  though  in  part  still  hostile  to  this 
great  moral  revolution  from  a  dread  of  its  producing 
political  commotions,  are  many  of  them  favorable ;  and 
where  they  are  not,  the  conflicting  energy  of  the  light 
is  so  much  the  stronger.  Many  enlightened  preachers 
already  proclaim  the  gospel  in  its  power ;  many  who 
are  still  in  obscurity  will  come  forward.  I  see  the 
dawn ;  the  day  itself  I  shall  behold  not  here,  but  from 
a  higher  place.  You  will  live  to  witness  it  below. 
Despise  not  the  words  of  a  gray-headed  old  man,  who 
would  give  you,  with  true  affection,  a  few  hints  relative 
to  this  great  day. 

"  The  more  divine  a  power  is,  the  more  to  be  dep- 
recated is  its  perversion.  When  those  last  times  are 
spoken  of  in  Scripture,  in  which  the  gospel  shall  be 
spread  over  the  whole  world,  it  is  declared  that  the 
truth  will  not  only  have  to  contend  with  the  propor- 
tionally more  violent  counterworking  of  the  enemy,  but 
also  with  a  great  measure  of  delusion  and  error  within 
the  kingdom  of  light.     Such  is  the  course  of  things 


QUOTATION  FEOM  THOLUCK.  295 

that  every  truth  has  its  shadow ;  and  the  greatest  truth 
is  attended  by  the  greatest  shadow.     Above  all  things 
take  care  that  the  tempter  do  not  introduce  his  craft 
into  the  congregation  of  the   faithful.     There  will  be 
those   for  whom  the   simple   gospel   will   not    suffice. 
When  a  man  has  experienced  the  forgiveness  of  his  sins, 
and  has  for  a  little  while  enjoyed  the  happiness  of  that 
mercy,  it  not  unfrequently  appears  to  his  evil  and  in- 
constant heart  too  humiliating  a  condition  to  be  con- 
stantly receiving  grace  for  grace.     There  is  no   other 
radical  cure  for  a  proud,  self-willed  heart  than   every 
day  and  every  hour  to  repeat  that  act  by  which  we 
first  came  to  Christ.     Pray  that  you  may  have  more  of 
that  childlike  spirit  which  regards  the  grace  of  your 
Lord  as  a  perennial  fountain  of  life.     Especially  avoid 
the  error  of  those  who  seek  life  for  the  sake  of  light, 
who  would  make  religion  a  mere  stepping-stone  to  in- 
tellectual superiority.    Such  persons  will  never  attain  to 
a  vital  apprehension  of  divine  things ;  for  our  God  is  a 
jealous  God,  and  will  be  loved  by  us  for  his  own  sake. 
The  intellectual  power,  the  mental  enlargement  arising 
from  converse  with  the  great  objects  of  faith  is  always 
to    be    regarded   as   a   secondary   and    supplementary 
benefit  to  that  which  it  is  the  immediate  object  of  the 
gospel   to   bestow.     Despise   not   human  greatness  or 
talent  or  ability  of  any  kind,  but  beware  lest  you  over- 
value it.     I  see  a  time  coming — indeed  it  is  already  at 
hand — in  which  gifted  men  will  lift  up  their  voices  foi 
the  truth ;  but  woe  to  the  times  in  which  admiration 
and  applause  of  the  speaker  shall  be  substituted  foi 
laying  to  heart  the  truth  which  he  delivers  !     Perhaps 
in  the  next  generation  there  will  be  no  one  in  some 
parts  of  Germany  who  will  not  wish  to  be  called  a 
Christian.     Learn  to  distinguish  the  spirits.     The  sum 
of  ray  exhortations  is  humility  and  love  !  " 


296  HISTOKY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

The  most  poetical  and  not  the  least  penetrating  of 
the  evangelical  school  is  Lange,  once  a  farmer,  but  now 
a  laborious  professor  at  Bonn.  How  deeply  he  has  im 
Kbed  the  spirit  of  the  Scriptures  may  be  seen  in  the 
Bible-  Work,  which  Dr.  Schaff  is  now  editing  for 
the  use  of  the  American  public.  Religion,  according 
to  Lange,  is  subjectively  a  life-emotion  of  the  human 
nature,  and  objectively  a  revelation  of  God.  In  the 
former  case  it  may  be  termed  natural,  in  the  latter, 
revealed.  The  world  is  not  a  mere  world,  but  a  self- 
revelation  of  God  in  its  fullest  import.  Creation  is  not 
simply  creation,  but  a  divine  testimony.  Nature  is  not 
nature  alone,  but  a  seed  of  life  proceeding  from  the 
spirit  and  returning  to  the  spirit.  The  proof  of  the  true 
human  conception  of  God,  as  well  as  of  man,  is  their 
harmonious  union  in  the  conception  of  the  God-man. 
This  is  the  centre  of  all  doctrine.  The  world  is  a  pro- 
gressive succession,  developing  the  divine  germ.  His- 
tory unites  itself  to  revelation  as  a  second  creation,  ele- 
vating man  to  continuous  growth.  God's  providential 
changes  unite  with  the  active  faith  of  man,  and  they  do 
not  constitute  an  isolated  act  of  God,  but  a  great  his- 
torical combination  of  revelations.  They  rise  gradually 
and  find  their  completion  in  the  God-man. 

Miracles  are  the  penetration  of  the  absolute  or  new 
human-divine  life  principle  into  the  sphere  of  the  old 
natural  human  life.  The  revelation  of  the  divine-human 
in  Christ  is  the  absolute  miracle  which  manifests  itself 
in  a  succession  of  single  miracles.  A  miracle  is  super, 
natural  and  contrary  to  nature  only  in  reference  to  the 
old  life,  and,  in  its  highest  meaning,  is  in  conformity  to 
a  higher  law.  Therefore,  miracles  are  the  natural  law 
of  all  natural  laws  taken  together.  Inspiration  is  in 
consonance  with  miracle ;  and  there  is  a  dissimilarity 


NITZSCH   AND   TWESTEN.  297 

of  inspiration  observable  in  the  Scriptures.  The  Old 
and  New  Testaments  are  very  different,  so  also  are  the 
canonical  and  hagiographical  writings.  The  word  of 
God  is  contained  in  the  Scriptures,  and  is  there  brought 
into  living  unity  and  operation  with  the  mind  of  man. 
This  union  does  not  exclude  human  imperfections.  But 
such  imperfections  are  of  a  superficial  character,  and  in 
no  wise  affect  the  kernel  and  religious  centre  of  the 
Bible.1 

The  two  most  prominent  divines  in  the  department 
of  dogmatical  theology  are  Nitzsch  and  Twesten.  The 
latter  was  Schleiermacher's  successor  at  Berlin.  Bright 
hopes  were  placed  on  him,  but  he  has  been  a  tardy  au- 
thor, and  does  not  possess  the  brilliant  gifts  of  his  great 
prototype.  Yet  he  is  a  clear  and  profound  thinker, 
and,  with  a  few  points  of  exception,  thoroughly  evan- 
gelical. He  is  an  ardent  admirer  of  the  old  Lutheran 
theology,  and,  like  his  predecessor,  places  religion  in 
feeling  and  dependence  instead  of  in  knowledge. 

Nitzsch  is  also  a  disciple  of  Schleiermacher,  and  his 
doctrinal  system  bears  distinct  traces  of  the  master's 
instructions.  But  it  is  a  bold  work,  and  has  inflicted 
great  mischief  upon  the  doctrinal  claims  of  the  later 
Rationalists,  who  betook  themselves  to  theory  after 
their  exegesis  and  history  had  failed  them.  The  scope 
of  his  system  is  broad  and  clear.  He  commences  by 
assigning  Christian  doctrine  its  proper  place  in  theo- 
logical study,  a  definition  of  the  general  idea  of  Chris- 
tianity, a  statement  of  the  laws  by  which  a  knowledge 
of  Christianity  is  acquired,  and  a  history  of  the  Chris- 
tian system  and  its  exhibition  in  the  purest  form.  The 
three  parts  constituting  the  substance  of  Nitzsch's  opin- 
ions, are  The   Good,  the  Bad,  and  Salvation.     Chris 

1  Dogmatii,  1849. 


298  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

fcianity  is  a  determinate  mode  of  man's  life,  and  is  so 
determined  by  conscious  dependence  on  God,  but  in  no 
wise  by  knowledge,  conception,  action,  or  the  will. 
Religion  does  not  arise  from  experience  and  sensation, 
but  from  an  original  self-consciousness.  There  is  an 
intimate  connection  between  doctrine  and  practice, 
truth  and  holiness.  Redemption  is  not  merely  a  resto- 
ration, nor  a  mere  perfected  creation,  but  one  through 
the  other.  It  is  related  to  an  original  good,  apart  from 
which  the  bad  itself  would  have  no  place,  opportunity 
for  existence,  or  continuance;  since  redemption  is  so 
closely  connected  with  evil.  Moreover,  the  good — in 
which  evil  has  found  opportunities  for  manifestation — 
cannot  be  the  same  which  caused  redemption.  Hence, 
we  safely  presume  the  existence  of  an  eternal  God.  This 
being  is  the  foundation  of  Christian  faith  and  life.  A 
belief  in  the  Redeemer  cannot  be  separated  from  that  in 
the  Creator.  But  it  is  through  a  knowledge  of  the  Re- 
deemer that  the  Creator,  with  all  his  work,  first  becomes 
known  in  his  perfect  goodness  and  truth.  The  doctrine 
of  salvation  is  more  closely  related  to  the  degenerated 
condition  of  the  world  than  to  the  original  good,  or  to 
the  right  conduct  of  the  creature  towards  God.  Evil 
became  possible  with  the  creation  of  personality,  though 
without  being  necessary.  But  it  has  become  so  very 
real  that  the  heavenly  Adam  must  needs  come  into  the 
world  to  destroy  the  works  of  the  devil, — which  are  sin 
and  death, — and  to  renew  the  communion  of  the  crea- 
tion with  the  Creator.  The  effectuating  cause  of  man's 
permitting  himself  to  be  seduced  into  sin,  was  not  any 
fixed  purpose  or  predestination  of  God,  but  man's  per 
feet  moral  freedom.  He  chose  the  evil,  and  hence  he 
inherits  sin  with  all  its  dire  results.  Since  then,  sin  has 
become  a  bias  and  righteousness  requires  an  effort  foi 


KOTHE.  299 

ts  performance.  But  man  is  accessible  to  divine  legis- 
lation by  being  the  subject  of  fear,  shame,  and  punish 
uient.  The  church  is  an  abiding  testimony  and  a  con 
tinued  means  for  the  redemptive  ministry  of  Christ.  It 
is  the  congregation  of  the  sanctified.1 

From  these  two  useful  professors  in  Berlin  we 
pass  southward  to  Heidelberg,  and  delay  a  moment 
with  the  celebrated  Rothe.  In  his  work  on  the 
Primitive  Church  he  endeavors  to  explain  the  philos- 
ophy of  the  whole  ecclesiastical  system.  He  views  the 
elements  of  the  church  in  solution,  and  thence  tries  to 
deduce  general  principles.  He  advances  the  view,  with 
Coleridge  and  Arnold,  that  the  church  will  not  be 
complete  until  absorbed  in  the  state.  Its  present  sep- 
arate condition  is  provisional,  and  can  only  last  during 
the  time  that  Christianity  is  being  developed.  This 
period  may  be  of  long  duration,  but  the  development 
of  our  race  is  ever  progressing.  The  church  must  exist 
on  its  own  basis  during;  the  interval.  Human  deeds  of 
righteousness  tend  toward  the  perfection  of  the  church. 
Then  will  religion  permeate  the  world.  Yet  it  will  not 
exist  as  something  separate,  but  all-penetrative.  It  will 
not  be  absolutely  divine,  but  superlatively  human. 
Thus  will  the  dualism  of  the  human  and  divine,  the 
religious  and  the  moral,  be  destroyed.  When  the  day 
of  ecclesiastical  perfection — which  is  really  civil  perfec- 
tion— arrives,  the  state  will  perform  the  functions  of 
the  church.  It  will  exercise  church  discipline  for  the 
purpose  of  religious  and  moral  training.  The  divergence 
between  religious  and  worldly  science  will  be  abrogated, 
and  there  will  be  no  longer  any  conflict  between  the 
worship  of  God  and  nature.     It   is   plain   that   these 

1  System  of  Christian  Doctrine.    Translated  by  Montgomery  and  Hen- 
nen.     Clark's  Library,  Edinburgb,  1849. 


3  00  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISE 

views  are  based  upon  those  of  Hegel,  who  said  of  the 
state,  that  "  it  is  the  totality  of  moral  purposes."  l 

The  ethical  system  of  Rothe  is  one  of  the  most 
original  and  profound  pieces  of  devout  and  reverent 
speculation  in  the  entire  range  of  theological  literature. 
It  has  been  termed  "a  work  of  art  as  well  as  of  science; 
and  the  several  stones  of  the  ethical  system  are  reared 
up  here  into  a  magnificent  gothic  cathedral  by  the  skill 
of  a  master  architect."  It  is  based  on  the  unity  and 
identity  of  religion  and  morality.  Here,  as  in  the 
theory  of  the  relations  of  church  and  state,  the  Hegelian 
philosophy  is  very  perceptible.  God's  love  is  mani- 
fested in  creation,  and  there  existed  the  necessity  of  his 
creative  activity  in  order  to  communicate  himself  to 
others.  Hence,  God's  love  is  not  a  mere  attribute,  but 
one  of  the  necessary  conditions  of  his  being.  Creation 
is  a  necessary  act  of  God.  God  is  as  truly  creator  as 
he  is  benevolent.  There  is,  therefore,  a  correlation  of 
God  and  the  world.  There  is  no  God  without  also  the 
world.  God's  creative  activity  is  still  continued  by  his 
providential  movements,  and  these  are  the  steps  of 
man's  development.  Man's  complete  character  is  in 
some  measure  dependent  on  his  discipline,  and  sin  is 
the  necessary  ordeal  or  process  through  which  he  must 
pass  in  order  to  arrive  at  the  highest  development.2 

Rothe  has  very  recently  published  a  volume  of  his 
essays,  entitled  A  Contribution  to  Dogmatw  Theology. 
It  is  occupied  mostly  with  the  consideration  of  the 
Scriptures.  The  author  thus  states  his  opinion  :  "  The 
matters  I  handle  in  this  volume  inevitably  place  me  in 
a  most  unfavorable  position.  The  question  is  one  in 
which  I  find  myself  in  direct  conflict  with  both  the 
leading  parties  in  the  theology  of  the  present  day.     My 

1  Die  Anfange  der  ChrMlichen  Kirche  und  Hirer  Verfassung,  1837. 
%  Ethih— 1845-1848. 


ROTHE?S    LAST    WORK.  301 

mode  of  regarding  Holy  Scripture  runs  directly  counter 
to  modern  orthodoxy.  My  supernaturalism  and  firm 
"belief  in  revelation  are  no  less  opposed  to  theological 
liberalism.  This  very  antagonism  encourages  me  to 
hope  that  I  may  be  found  to  have  spoken  a  word  iu 
season.  On  the  one  hand,  it  is  my  belief  that  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  age  will  never  thoroughly  reassimilate 
Christianity  till  it  can  take  courage  to  believe  again  in 
miracle  and  supernatural  influence.  I  am  no  less  firmly 
convinced,  on  the  other  hand,  that  miracle  and  super- 
natural influence  will  never  find  their  way  into  the 
conscious  belief  of  Christians  in  the  form  in  which 
church-theology  has  allowed  those  ideas  to  be  inocu- 
lated into  it.  That  which  is  passed  can  never  be  re- 
called to  life  after  history  has  once  buried  it.  But 
there  are  not  a  few  persons  who  long  for  the  reconcilia- 
tion of  the  old  and  the  new.  These  are  the  persons  to 
whom  I  would  gladly  be  useful  according  to  my  small 
measure."  * 

Kothe  regards  the  supernatural  interference  of  the 
Deity  in  the  stream  of  human  history  as  a  part  of  that 
history.  It  is  not  enough  that  the  divine  interposition 
has  incorporated  itself  with  the  traditions  of  the  race ; 
it  must  be  fixed  in  a  written  narrative.  Not  only  must 
there  be  a  book  or  writing,  but  that  book  must  be  of  a 
historical  character.  As  the  revelation  did  not  consist 
in  doctrines,  so  the  doctrine  we  require  is  not  a  creed 
or  compend  of  doctrines.  Besides  vouching  the  facts, 
the  doctrines  must  represent  them  in  a  vivid  manner : 
that  is,  the  writing  must  be  such  as  can  stand  for  long 
posterior  generations  in  the  place  of  the  original  revela- 
tion, and  place  us  in  the  immediate  personal  experience 
of  revelation.     It  is  part  of  the  extraordinary  operation 

1  Ethil,  Preface,  p.  6. 


302  HISTOKY    OF   RATIONALE:  M. 

of  the  Deity  to  provide  such  a  writing.     The  document 
itself,  as  well  as  the  facts  it  relates,  are  supernaturally 
produced.    What  the  divine  influences  in  the  world  are 
to  its  moral  and  human  laws,  the  record  of  those  influ- 
ences is  to  ordinary  narrative.     The  Bible  is  therefore 
what  the  old  Protestant  theology  styled  it,  "  The  Word 
of  God  " :  but  in  a  very  different  sense.     It  was  meant 
by  that  phrase  that  the  books,  as  we  have  them,  were 
dictated  by  God  in  such  a  way  that  the  sacred  penmen 
contributed    nothing   but    the   letter-marks   upon   the 
paper.     The  dogma  of  inspiration  current  in  the  six- 
teenth century  is  not  accepted.     The  inspi ration  which 
Rothe  attributes  to  the  Bible  is  the   same  by  which  he 
explains  that  peculiar  impression  received  by  the  pious 
soul  from  its  study  of  the  book.     It  is  the  constant  ex- 
perience of  the  evangelical  Christian,  that,  in  his  Bible 
he  possesses  a  direct  means  of  grace.     Scripture  is  to 
him  an  active  medium  of  the  saving  work  of  God  in  his 
soul,  and  supernatural   forces   move  within   it.      The 
Bible  stands  alone  in  all  literature  as  this  incarnation 
of  a  fresh,  full,  life-giving  religious  spirit.     But  the  pe- 
culiar influence  which  it  exercises  upon  minds  indicates 
not  merely  a  divine  element  in  its  pages,  but  a  whole, 
complex,  and  sound  human  spirit  side  by  side  with  that 
divine  element ;  the  two  not  crossing  or  interfering  with 
each  other,  but  forming  together  a  unity  of  living  truth. 
The  books  of  the  Bible  must  be  regarded  as  the  general 
product  of  the  minds  of  their  human  authors.     These 
authors  have  had  their  moments  of  inspiration,  to  which 
they  owe  much  of  the  religious  experience   they  have 
embalmed  in  their  writings.     But  inspiration  was  not 
the  normal  condition  of  their  minds,  nor  were    their 
books  written  during  the  moments  o'*  such  inspiration. 
Again,  not  every  part  of  the  Bible  is  an  equally  full  and 


SCHEXKELS    RATIONALISM.  303 

intense  expression  of  this  spiritual  mind  of  the  writer. 
We  must  assume  degrees  of  inspiration  according  with 
the  nature  of  the  contents,  and  with  their  nearer  or  re- 
moter bearing  on  the  proper  matter  of  the  prophetical 
utterances.1 

Passing  over  the  names  of  Julius  Muller,  Ebrard, 
Havernick,  Hundeshagen,  Umbreit,  Gieseler,  Olshaus- 
en,  Hagenbach,  and  Jacobi,  we  pause  at  Schenkel  and 
Hengstenberg. 

Schenkel  has  been,  until  lately,  a  recognized  evangel- 
ical theologian.  The  author  of  the  Essence  of  Protest- 
antism, he  took  his  stand  as  an  able  defender  of  ortho- 
doxy ;  and  there  was  every  reason  to  hope  that  he  would 
be  one  of  the  chief  agents  in  the  final  overthrow  of  Ba- 
tionalism.  As  a  proof  of  the  high  estimate  placed  upon 
his  opinions,  when  the  Baden  government  and  church 
consistory  were  calling  their  strongest  orthodox  theo- 
logians into  the  various  posts  of  prominence,  after  the 
Revolution  of  1848,  Schenkel  was  declared  counselor, 
and  director  of  the  theological  seminary  of  Heidelberg. 
From  that  time  almost  to  the  present  his  evangelical 
sentiments  had  not  been  questioned.  But,  when  his 
Picture  of  the  Character  of  Jesus  appeared,  the  surprise 
was  great  throughout  Germany.  It  seemed  incredible 
that  he  could  write  a  work  in  such  direct  antagonism 
to  all  his  previous  views.  People  were  unwilling  to 
censure  it  at  first ;  the  Rationalists  rejoicing  at  the  great 
accession,  and  the  orthodox  retaining  too  much  respect 
for  the  author's  past  services  to  bestow  harsh  criticism 
upon  him.  But  a  book  of  importance  need  not  wait 
long  in  Germany  upon  the  publishers  shelf  before  it  is 
weighed  and  assigned  its  proper  position  in  literature. 
In  due  time  the  critics  came  forward,  sifted  its  contents, 

1  Westminster  Review,  July,  18S3. 


304  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

and  decided  it  to  be  skeptical.  The  theological  periodi 
cals  abounded  in  lengthy  reviews  of  it.  Schenkel 
seemed  as  much  astounded  as  any  one  else  at  the  public 
judgment.  He  answered  the  charges  against  his  ortho 
doxy  by  stoutly  denying  that  he  had  turned  Rationalist. 
He  held  that  his  critics  were  so  obtuse  that  they  could 
not  understand  him ;  and  that  if  he  were  accused  of 
heterodoxy  it  was  their  blunder  and  not  his  guilt.  But 
it  is  needless  to  say  that  Schenkel  makes  a  poor  case  for 
himself.  His  book  stands  against  him.  The  miracles 
of  Christ  receive  his  severe  comment.  They  are,  in  his 
opinion,  the  dark  shade  which  has  been  cast  upon  the 
bright  splendor  of  the  public  activity  of  Jesus.  It  was 
a  matter  of  course  that  the  idea  of  a  life  like  that  of  the 
Redeemer  should,  soon  after  his  death,  be  veiled  by  a 
multitude  of  tales.  His  disciples  endeavored  to  repre- 
sent his  internal  wonderful  power  of  personal  glory  and 
greatness  by  the  external  miraculous  occurrences  which 
they  ascribed  to  him.  Their  deeply  excited  imagina- 
tion magnified  the  great  hero  whom  they  had  loved  and 
admired.  Their  enthusiastic  religious  fancy  did  him 
homage  by  ascribing  to  him  the  performance  of  miracles 
The  gift  of  working  miracles  was  merely  the  endow- 
ment of  nature.  For  Jesus  was  favored  with  the  highest 
ability  and  rarest  moral  power,  by  which  he  worked 
beneficially  upon  sufferers  and  took  them  by  surprise. 
Schenkel  further  rejects  and  denies  the  faith  in  Christ's 
personal  and  bodily  resurrection  from  the  dead,  and  his 
continuation  of  life  in  the  glory  of  the  Father.  But  he 
holds  that  Christ  lives  in  his  community,  in  which  are 
his  home  and  temple.  The  living  Christ  is  the  spirit 
of  his  community. 

After   the   position  of  Schenkel's  work   had   been 
fairly  decided,  numerous  remonstrances  appeared  against 


HEXGSTEKBERG.  305 

it  from  the  orthodox  theologians.  One  hundred  and 
eighteen  clergymen  sent  in  a  formal  protest  to  the  con- 
sistory for  his  removal  from  his  important  office  as 
director  of  the  seminary.  But  the  ecclesiastical  council 
decided  in  favor  of  his  continuance  in  discharge  of  his 
functions.  They  extenuated  themselves  by  saying  that 
the  free  examination  of  the  Scriptures  is  the  privilege 
of  Protestant  Christians.  The  Rationalists  claim  the 
result  as  one  of  the  most  signal  of  their  recent  vic- 
tories. 

Hengstenberg,  the  strongest  and  most  heroic  of  the 
later  opponents  of  Rationalism,  commenced  very  early 
in  life  as  both  author  and  professor.  It  is  now  more 
than  thirty  years  since  he  was  elected  professor  of  Old 
Testament  exegesis  at  Berlin.  He  was  chosen  to  that 
important  position  with  a  view  to  counteract  the  pre- 
vailing Rationalism,  and,  if  possible,  to  raise  up  a  new 
school  of  earnest  evangelical  men.  He  has  not  been 
without  success.  Having  never  swerved  from  his 
first  avowed  position,  his  antipathy  to  all  kinds  of 
skepticism  is  so  sincere  and  active  that  he  combats  it 
without  any  regard  to  moderation  or  consequences. 

Of  all  the  members  of  the  Evangelical  school  he 
takes  the  highest  rank  as  controversialist,  and  defender 
of  the  Old  Testament.  He  saw  that  it  was  the  Old 
Testament  which  the  Rationalists  had  assailed  most 
vigorously,  and  that  unless  they  were  met  upon  their 
own  ground  they  would  claim  the  mastery  of  the  field. 
Hence,  he  made  the  Pentateuch,  Daniel,  and  the  second 
part  of  the  prophecy  of  Isaiah  the  theme  of  his  de- 
fence i — for  it  was  these  that  the  Rationalists  had  long 
claimed  as  their  collateral  evidence.  At  that  very  time 
there  was  almost  no  orthodox  theologian  in  Germany 

1  Beitriige  zur  Einleitung  in  das  alte  Testamente.     Drai  Bande,  1831-39. 


306  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

who  Lad  confidence -enough  to  contend  for  them.  But 
the  greatest  apologetic  achievement  of  Hengstenberg 
was  his  christological  work.1  Here  he  develops  his 
theory  that  the  Messianic  prophecies  extend  through 
the  entire  Old  Testament ;  that  they  can  be  traced 
in  Genesis ;  that  they  increase  in  clearness  as  the  scrip- 
tural history  advances  ;  that  they  become  perfectly  lucid 
in  the  later  prophets ;  and  that  they  are  finally  fulfilled 
in  the  Messiah  himself. 

But  it  was  not  by  theological  lectures  or  books  that 
Hengstenberg  achieved  his  greatest  triumphs  over  Ra- 
tionalism and  Pantheism.  Clearly  perceiving  the  power 
of  the  periodical  press,  he  commenced  the  publication 
of  the  Evangelical  Church  Gazette,  which  by  its  fear- 
less spirit  and  marked  talent,  soon  became  the  chief 
theological  journal  of  Germany.  Its  aim  was  not  only 
to  overthrow  skepticism  but  everything  which  min- 
istered to  its  support.  Its  contributors  have  been 
among  the  leading  men  of  the  country,  among  whom 
we  find  such  names  as  Otto  von  Gerlach,  Professors  Leo 
and  Huber,  and  Doctors  Goschel,  Vilmar,  Stahl,  Tho- 
luck  and  Lange.  The  Gazette  has  changed  its  tone  ac- 
cording to  the  new  demands  of  the  times,  but  it  has 
never  abated  its  deadly  antagonism  to  Rationalism.  It 
has  betrayed  an  increasing  High  Church  tendency,  es- 
pecially since  1840.  The  editor,  true  to  his  earnest 
nature,  believed  that  no  moderate  and  conciliatory 
spirit  was  capable  of  successfully  resisting  the  great 
enemies  of  the  church.  The  relief  which  he  relied 
upon  was  in  fighting  them  with  the  heroic  ardor  of 
a  crusader.  Hence  he  claimed  that  an  elevation  of 
ecclesiastical  power  was  necessary  to  meet  the  demand  ; 
and  therefore  he  stands  to  day  as   the  High  Church 

1  Christologie.    Drei  Bande,  1829-35. 


EVANGELICAL   JOURNALS.  307 

tampion  of  Protestant  Germany.  For  this  course  he 
has  received  quite  as  many  maledictions  as  have  been 
visited  upon  Pusey  of  England,  but  he  is  one  of  those 
men  who  care  as  little  for  the  curses  of  foes  as  for  the 
adulations  of  friends. 

There  have  been  other  theological  journals  which 
have  contributed  greatly  to  the  spread  of  vital  Christi- 
anity in  Germany.1  They  do  not  possess,  on  the  one 
hand,  the  popular  character  of  many  of  our  religious 
papers,  nor,  on  the  other,  do  they  deal  so  much  in  ab- 
struse theological  questions  as  to  preclude  them  from 
large  circles  of  readers.  They  possess  popular  adapta- 
tion without  yielding  to  the  demand  for  light  religious 
reading.  Many  of  their  contributions  having  been 
written  by  far-sighted  laymen,  they  have  gained  access 
to  minds  usually  occupied  in  the  absorbing  interests  of 
commercial  and  political  life.  The  whole  Protestant 
church  owes  a  debt  of  profound  gratitude  to  the  men 
who  commenced  these  enterprises  and  have  zealously  sus- 
tained them  through  the  social  changes  which  have  con- 
vulsed Germany. 

But  in  our  estimate  of  renewed  religious  life  we 
must  not  overlook  the  improved  condition  of  the  in- 
struction now  imparted  in  the  gymnasia  and  universi- 
ties. 2  Besides  the  names  we  have  already  mentioned 
there  are  professors  and  instructors  of  all  grades  who 
have   drunk  deeply  of  the  spirit  of  the    Gospel,   and, 

'Besides  the  Evangelical  Church  Gazette,  semi- weekly,  by  Hengstenberg, 
established  1827,  are  the  Studien  unci  Kritiken,  by  Ullmann  and  Umbreit, 
1828  ;  the  Deutsche  Zeitschrift  fur  christliche  Wissenschaft,  &c,  by  Nean- 
der,  Nitz>ch,  and  Muller,  1850;  and  the  Jahrbucher  fur  Deutsche  Theologie, 
by  Liebner,  Dorner,  and  others,  1856. 

a  An  invaluable  account  of  the  common  and  higher  Schools  of  Ger- 
many is  furnished  in  Horace  Mann's  Seventh  Annual  Report,  published  in 
the  Common  School  Journal  of  Boston,  under  the  title  of  Education  in  Eu- 
rope, 1844. 


308  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

having  been  taught  and  encouraged  by  such  men  as 
Hengstenberg  and  Tholuck,  are  now  strengthening 
themselves  for  future  victory.  Young  men  have  passed 
through  their  student  life  in  Halle,  Heidelberg,  and 
Berlin,  and  are  now  scattered  throughout  the  land,  sow- 
ing the  seeds  of  truth,  and  urging  the  people  to  espouse 
the  good  cause.  Others  are  preparing  to  take  their  places 
when  these  are  no  more.  The  spirit  of  theological  in- 
struction has  undergone  such  a  thorough  transformation 
that  the  old  nationalism  which  had  so  long  prevailed 
is  now  taught  by  only  a  few  gray-haired  veterans,  who, 
many  years  ago,  listened  to  the  lectures  of  Wegscheider 
and  Gesenius.  They  are  now  bringing  their  days  to  a 
close  in  the  midst  of  a  narrow  circle  of  auditors  who  hear 
from  curiosity  or  indolence,  and  never  expect  to  use  their 
information  to  any  future  advantage.  Devotional 
services  are  becoming  more  common  among  the  students. 
The  Scriptures  are  studied  with  a  feeling  of  devout  rev- 
erence, and  are  no  longer  subjected  to  that  profane  ridi- 
cule which  has  given  an  unenviable  fame  to  many  of 
the  Rationalists. 

Much  of  this  improved  evangelical  spirit  observa- 
ble in  the  students  of  all  the  Protestant  Universities, — 
for  even  Tubingen  has  been  obliged  to  yield, — is  due  to 
the  kindly  intercourse  between  the  professors  and  the 
students.  In  no  country  is  education  so  much  a  matter 
of  friendship  as  in  Germany.  The  professors  cultivate 
social  and  even  intimate  relations  with  the  under- 
graduates, nor  do  they  consider  it  beneath  their  dignity 
to  invite  them  frequently  to  their  homes,  draw  out  their 
minds  by  discussing  some  important  point,  loan  them 
books  or  periodicals,  suggest  subjects  for  essays  or 
books,  employ  their  service  as  amanuenses,  and  recom- 
mend them  in  due  time  for   proper   vacancies.       Who 


PROFESSORS    AND    STUDENTS.  309 

would  suspect  that  half-bent,  sallow  little  man,  wrapped 
up  in  his  blue  coat,  and  walking  briskly  a  mile  or  two 
from  Halle  through  the  wintry  storm,  of  being  the  pa- 
tient and  devout  Tholuck  ?  But  he  is  not  alone.  Be- 
side him  is  a  youthful  stripling  who  opens  his  heart  to 
the  professor,  catches  every  word  of  response  as  if  it 
were  a  priceless  diamond,  and  treasures  each  utterance 
for  future  use.  To-morrow,  the  same  kindly  teacher 
will  be  attended  by  one  or  two  other  young  men,  whom 
he  is  desirous  to  encourage,  direct,  and  instruct. 

Such  intimacy  does  not  lead  to  any  disrespect  to- 
ward the  professors,  but  rather  increases  the  reverence 
for  their  age  and  talents.  The  hours  of  profitable  commu- 
nion naturally  become  a  fund  of  pleasant  memories  to 
the  student  in  his  subsequent  life.  Knowledge  thus 
imparted  is  deeper-rooted  than  that  conveyed  in  the 
lecture-room,  and  hence,  in  the  literary  and  theological 
history  of  Protestant  Germany,  we  find  many  illustra- 
tions of  the  consistent  and  steady  prosecution,  by  a 
disciple,  of  a  tendency  or  system  which  the  master  com- 
menced but  died  too  soon  to  finish.  One  of  the  prime 
agents  in  the  rise  of  Pietism  was  Spener's  child-like  in- 
timacy with  young  men.  They  imbibed  his  spirit  and 
knowledge,  and  the  fire  burned  after  his  departure. 

As  to  the  future,  there  is  no  room  for  discourage- 
ment.  The  leaven  of  faith  has  been  penetrating  the 
entire  mass  of  German  theology,  and  the  prospect  ia 
to-day  brighter  than  ever  before.  The  bold  and  con- 
tinued defense  of  Christianity,  in  all  its  vital  relations, 
has  accomplished  great  good  during  the  entire  interval 
between  Schleiermacher's  period  of  activity  and  the 
present  time  The  recuperation  of  German  Protestant- 
ism from  the  polar  frigidity  of  skepticism  to  the  faith 
and  spirit  of  the  Gospel,  is  one  of  the  most  beautiful 


310  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

and  forcible  of  all  the  illustrations  of  the  indestructible 
and  regenerating  power  of  Christianity.  The  instruc- 
tion imparted  in  the  high-schools  has  long  since  lost  its 
Rationalistic  puerilities.  The  candidates  for  the  pastoral 
office  are  not  asked  such  questions  as  were  propounded 
to  their  fathers  and  predecessors.  Church  history, 
written  in  clear  and  natural  style,  is  no  longer  a  collec- 
tion of  pointless  anecdotes.  Exegesis  has  ceased  to  be 
a  word-play,  and  the  companion  of  classical  annota- 
tions. The  sermons  of  the  present  ministry  partake 
of  Reinhard's  earnestness  and  faith.  Gallicisms  and 
technical  terminology  are  no  longer  proclaimed  to 
the  peasants,  while  the  artisan  is  no  more  entertained 
with  grandiloquent  descriptions  of  the  last  night  of 
Socrates,  or  with  Ciceronian  laudations  of  the  Schoolmen.1 
The  popular  attendance  at  the  public  services  is  greatly 
on  the  increase,  and  the  congregations  are  expressing  in 
no  doubtful  terms  their  desire  for  the  restoration  of  the 
thrilling  evangelical  hymns  of  other  days.2 

The  masses,  having  tasted  the  word  of  God  in  its 
simplicity,  will  not  be  satisfied  without  deep  draughts 
for  many  future  years.  The  Protestant  Church  will  yet 
be  "  fair  as  the  moon,  clear  as  the  sun,  and  terrible  as 
an  army  with  banners."  Then  will  Germany  be  what 
she  was  in  the  heroic  age  of  the  Reformation, — the 
instructor  of  the  ignorant,  the  friend  of  the  helpless, 
the  dread  of  Romanism,  and  the  mother  of  giants.  The 
evil  days  are  nearly  numbered.  "  Good  Friday  is  the 
precursor  of  a  joyous  Easter  Morning." 

1  Hagenbach,  Eirchengesehiclite  d.  18  und  19  Jahrhunderts,  Voi.  II.,  pp. 
884-388. 

2  An  instance  of  the  new  tendency  is  seen  in  the  recent  action  of  the 
Heilbronn  Clergy,  supported  by  the  Stuttgart  Consistory.  For  account  of 
which,  see  Christian  Work,  Sept.  1863. 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

PRACTICAL  MOVEMENTS  INDICATING  NEW  LITE. 

Jean  Paul  has  wittily  said  of  the  providential  dis- 
tribution of  the  earth  that  the  land  was  assigned  to  the 
French,  the  sea  to  the  English,  and  the  air  to  the  Ger- 
mans. Popular  opinion  is  not  much  at  variance  with 
this  sentiment  as  far  as  the  last  proprietorship  is  con- 
cerned. But  Germany  has  been  practical  withal. 
Shade  of  Jean  Paul !  What  if  thy  countrymen  do 
live  in  the  air ;  they  have  not  therefore  flown  so  far 
away  from  the  gross  nether  earth  as  to  lose  sight  of  its 
misery,  nor  become  deaf  to  its  wail  of  sorrow. 

German  Protestantism  has  given  birth  to  some  of 
the  greatest  charities  of  the  present  age,  whether  we 
take  into  the  account  the  number  of  the  beneficiaries  or 
the  faith  and  self-sacrifice  of  the  founders  and  their  suc- 
cessors. Even  during  the  period  of  religious  indifference 
there  were  here  and  there  celebrated  institutions  de- 
signed for  the  amelioration  of  the  suffering  classes. 
They  contended  against  great  opposkion,  but  like  a 
few  stars  amid  surrounding  clouds,  their  light  appear- 
ed to  all  the  greater  advantage.  Modern  philanthro- 
py has  received  a  great  impulse  by  the  labors  of 
Howard  and  Wilberforce.  But  the  charitable  institu- 
tions we  speak  of  were  in  progress  east  of  the  Rhine 


312  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

years  before  the  former  commenced  ahis  voyage  of  dis- 
covery, his  circumnavigation  of  charity,  to  collate  dis- 
tresses, to  gauge  wretchedness,  to  take  dimensions  of 
human  misery  ;"  or  before  the  latter  could  write  in  1807, 
after  so  many  labors  for  the  extinction  of  the  Slave 
Trade,  "  Oh  what  thanks  do  I  owe  to  the  Giver  of  all 
good  for  bringing  me  in  his  gracious  providence  to  this 
great  cause,  which  at  length,  after  almost  nineteen  years, 
labor,  is  successful." 

Philanthropy  stands  in  intimate  relations  to  revived 
christian  faith.  Sometimes  it  is  its  forerunner,  at 
x>thers  its  co-operator,  and  always  its  follower.  When- 
ever a  land  is  morally  prostrate  and  helpless,  the  minis- 
try skeptical  or  indifferent,  and  the  sects  arrayed 
against  each  other,  if  humane  efforts  can  be  discovered, 
there  is  hope  of  better  times.  Love  of  the  body  of 
man  is  the  unfailing  Baptist-herald  announcing  the 
speedy  care  of  his  soul.  The  only  indications  of  evan- 
gelical faith  in  Germany  at  the  closing  period  of  the 
eighteenth  century  were  the  quiet  labors  of  such  de- 
voted friends  of  humanity  as  Oberlin,  Hamann,  Lavater, 
and  Claudius.  And  philanthropy  assumed  a  more 
stalwart  form  in  the  same  ratio  as  religion  gained 
strength  over  the  popular  mind. 

We  have  already  spoken  of  the  celebrities  of 
Weimar.  Students  and  aspirants  to  fame  from  all 
parts  of  the  Continent  went  thither,  hoping  to  enjoy  at 
least  a  few  conversations  or  perhaps  a  subsequent  cor- 
respondence with  one  of  the  ruling  literary  divinities. 
To  have  a  word  of  advice  from  Goethe,  and  to  hear 
Schiller  read  an  ode  in  his  own  study  was  a  memory 
of  life-long  value.  Among  the  most  venturesome  of  this 
class  was  John  Falk,  once  the  humble  son  of  a  poor 
wig-maker  of  Dantzic,  but  afterwards  the  Halle  student, 


JOHN   FALK.  313 

the  novelist,  satirist,  and  poet. l  He  received  high  com- 
pliments from  Wieland,  and  was  admitted  into  an  inti- 
macy with  Goethe  which  resulted  in  his  publication  of 
the  latter's  Conversations.  He  gradually  gained  public 
favor,  and  his  elevation  to  the  society  and  attention  of 
the  literary  regency  of  Weimar  was  no  ordinary  testi- 
monial to  capacity  and  prospects. 

By  and  by  the  sound  of  war  was  heard  in  that 
town,  and  with  war  came  its  many  evils.  Napoleon 
having  proved  victorious  at  Jena,  his  legions  were  quar- 
tered on  the  poor  and  rich  through  all  the  surrounding 
country.  The  Duchy  of  Weimar,  with  its  population  of 
only  one  hundred  thousand,  were  required  to  support  for 
five  months  nine  hundred  thousand  of  the  enemy's  sol- 
diers, and  five  hundred  thousand  horses.  The  air  was 
rent  with  the  cries  of  orphans  and  poverty-stricken 
widows.  Sorrow  reigned  in  every  household,  and  the 
town  of  Weimar  became  a  prominent  part  of  the 
funeral  scene.  But,  unaccountable  as  it  may  appear, 
the  resident  literati  were  not  much  disturbed.  Living 
so  near  the  top  of  Parnassus,  they  would  not  listen  to 
the  storms  below.  Goethe,  the  acknowledged  prince, 
wrote  as  zealously  as  ever  in  his  villa-garden,  and  it 
will  be  a  lasting  stigma  on  his  fame  in  his  own  father- 
land that  he  chose  "  the  moment  of  his  country's  deep 
est  ruin  to  write  an  exquisite  classic  story." 

But  Falk  was  touched  by  what  he  saw.  He  could 
not  be  contented  with  literary  dreams  while  widows 
were  dying  around  him  of  starvation,  and  children 
were  growing  up  in  wickedness.  He  remembered  some 
words  said  to   him    by   the    burgomasters   of  Dantzic 

1  Praying  and  Working.  By  Kev.  W.  F.  Stevenson,  of  Dublin.  This 
is  by  far  the  best  source  of  information  on  the  leading  charities  of  Germany. 
Our  high  appreciation  of  its  value  is  indicated  by  the  use  made  of  its  con- 
tents in  the  preparation  of  our  account  of  Falk  and  other  humanitarians 
treated  in  this  chapter. 


314  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

when  they  met  one  day  in  the  town  hall,  and  an 
old  member  arose  and  told  him  that  they  had  concluded 
to  send  him  to  the  University  and  pay  his  own  expen- 
ses, adding  at  the  close  of  his  remarks :  "  One  thing 
only,  if  a  poor  child  should  ever  knock  at  your  door, 
think  it  is  we,  the  dead,  the  old,  gray-headed  burgo- 
masters and  councilors  of  Dantzic,  and  do  not  turn  us 
away."  At  last  the  poor  child  was  at  his  door.  Hence- 
forth Falk's  life  was  spent  in  reforming  criminal 
youth.  "  Come  in,"  said  he  to  the  vagrants,  "  come  in  ; 
God  has  taken  my  four  angels,  and  spared  me  that  I 
might  be  your  father." 

Falk  established  his  Reformatory  from  a  pure  love 
of  humanity,  and  of  Him  who  came  to  -seek  and  save 
the  lost.  His  method  was  simple.  The  lads  whom  he 
sought  out  and  who  came  to  him  were  desperately  wicked. 
No  sooner  were  they  within  his  institute  than  he  treated 
them  as  his  own  children.  The  two  words  so  often  on 
his  lips  reveal  the  principle  of  his  discipline :  "Love 
overcometh."  He  used  no  harshness,  and  would  have  no 
locks  on  his  doors.  He  said,  "  We  forge  all  our  chains 
on  the  heart,  and  scorn  those  that  are  laid  on  the  body ; 
for  it  is  written  '  If  the  Son  shall  make  you  free  ye 
shall  be  free  indeed.'"  "His  mind  was  hung  all  around 
with  pictures,"  says  Mr.  Stevenson,  who  has  furnished 
us  with  the  following  beautiful  specimen  of  Falk's 
picturesque  manner  of  teaching  great  truths  to  those 
who  fell  under  his  care. 

When  one  of  the  boys,  on  a  certain  evening,  had 
invoked  this  divine  blessing  on  their  supper,  "  Come, 
Lord  Jesus,  be  our  guest,  and  bless  what  thou  hast  pro- 
vided," another  boy  looked  up  and  asked, 

"  Do  tell  me  why  the  Lord  Jesus  never  comes  ?  We 
ask  Him  every  day  to  sit  with  us,  and  he  never  comes." 


falk's  benefactions.  31  o 

"Dear  child,"  replied  Father  Falk,  "only  believe 
and  you  may  be  sure  he  will  come,  for  he  does  not 
despise  our  invitation." 

"  I  shall  set  him  a  seat,"  said  the  Soy ;  and  just 
then,  a  knock  being  heard  at  the  door,  a  poor  ap- 
prentice came  for  admission.  He  was  received,  and  in- 
vited to  take  the  vacant  chair  at  the  table. 

Then  said  the  inquiring  boy  again,  "  Jesus  could  not 
ccme,  and  so  he  sent  this  poor  man  in  his  place:  is 
that  it  ? " 

"  Yes,  dear  child,  that  is  just  it.  Every  piece  of 
bread  and  every  drink  of  water  that  we  give  to  the 
poor,  or  the  sick,  or  the  prisoners,  for  Jesus'  sake,  we 
give  to  Him.  '  Inasmuch  as  ye  have  done  it  unto  one 
of  the  least  of  these  my  brethren,  ye  have  done  it 
unto  me.' " 

Falk's  benefactions  were  of  varied  character.  He 
organized  a  system  for  the  cessation  of  beggary  in  Wei- 
mar ;  established  a  training  institute,  the  Johanneum, 
for  instructors  of  the  youth  under  his  charge ;  sent  forth 
many  hundreds  of  the  inmates  of  his  Reformatory  to 
become  useful  members  of  society ;  wrote  earnest  re- 
ligious songs  which  the  people  will  sing  for  generations : 
died  uttering  the  words,  "God, — popular, — faith, — short, 
— Christ, — end  ; "  and  was  borne  to  the  grave  by  the 
children  whom  he  had  blessed.  His  resting-place  is  now 
marked  by  words  which  his  own  pen  had  written: 

"  Underneath  this  linden  tree 
Lies  John  Falk  ;  a  sinner  he, 
Saved  by  Christ's  blood  and  mercy. 


Born  upon  the  East  Sea  strand, 
Yet  he  left  home,  friends,  and  land, 
Led  to  Weimar  by  God's  hand. 
23 


316  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

When  the  little  children  round 
Stand  beside  this  grassy  mound, 
Asking,  who  lies  underground  ?— 

Heavenly  Father,  let  them  say, 
Thou  hast  taken  him  away; 
In  the  grave  is  only  clay." 

Other  philanthropists  followed  in  the  footsteps  of 
Falk.  What  he  did  for  children  has  been  succeeded  by 
greater  humanitarian  movements  in  behalf  of  the  crimi- 
nal youth,  and  abandoned  and  helpless  adults.  Theo- 
dore Fliedner  was  pastor  of  a  congregation  of  operatives 
in  Kaiserswerth,  in  1826.  Very  soon  after  his  install- 
ation they  were  reduced  almost  to  beggary  by  the  bank- 
ruptcy of  their  employers.  He  refused  to  leave  them 
in  their  distress,  and  devised  plans  for  their  relief.  One 
step  led  to  another.  He  became  the  friend  of  not  only 
the  poor  of  that  town,  but  of  all  the  adjacent  country. 
To  become  more  useful  at  home  he  traveled  through 
foreign  countries.  He  described  his  visit  to  London  in 
the  following  brief  but  characteristic  words,  "  I  have 
seen  Newgate  and  many  other  prisons? 

At  last  he  matured  a  settled  plan.  It  was  the 
amelioration  of  the  sick  poor.  The  largest  house  in  the 
town  being  for  sale,  he  secured  its  possession,  and  on  the 
13th  October,  1836,  opened  his  Deaconess  Institute.  The 
enemies  of  Fliedner  called  it  a  hospital,  and  looked  with 
aversion  upon  it.  The  beginning  was  very  unprom- 
ising. But  the  founder  never  hesitated,  and  the  close  of 
the  first  year  of  the  history  of  the  Institute  revealed 
the  fact  that  it  had  received  forty  sick  persons,  and 
that  these  were  nursed  by  seven  deaconesses.  Every  day 
gave  new  strength  to  the  enterprise ;  and  soon  there 
were  more  of  a  similar  character  springing  up  in 
Holland,  Switzerland,  France,  and   other  countries,  but 


INSTITUTION    AT   KAISERSWERTH.  317 

all  dependent  upon  the  parent  at  Kaiserswerth  for 
properly  trained  nurses  and  instructors.  The  organiza- 
tion of  new  institutes  at  a  great  distance,  imposed  se- 
vere labor  on  Fliedner,  but  it  was  cheerfully  undergone 
for  the  sake  of  the  great  cause  so  dear  to  him.  It  was 
to  advance  its  interests  that  he  came  to  America,  and  at 
terwards  went  to  Jerusalem,  to  superintend  the  estab- 
lishment of  branch  Institutes  of  Deaconesses.  They  are 
now  in  prosperous  existence  in  Constantinople,  Smyrna, 
Alexandria,  Bucharest,  and  Florence, — not  to  mention 
many  more  in  the  Protestant  lands  of  the  Continent. 

But  it  is  in  Kaiserswerth  that  the  Deaconesses  are 
trained  for  their  humanitarian  life-work.  Of  this  in 
stitution  Mr.  Stevenson  says:  "It  consists  of  an  Hospi- 
tal for  men,  women,  and  children;  a  Lunatic  Asylum 
for  females ;  an  Orphanage  for  girls  ;  a  Refuge  for  dis- 
charged female  convicts  ;  a  Magdalen  Asylum ;  a  Nor. 
mal  Seminary  for  governesses ;  an  Infant  School ;  a 
Chapel ;  two  shops  ;  a  publishing  office  ;  a  museum  ; 
residence  for  the  Deaconesses ;  and  a  Home  for  the  infirm. 
Besides,  as  the  property  of  the  Institution,  there  are  a 
home  for  maid-servants  in  Berlin ;  an  Orphanage  at 
Altdorf ;  the  Deaconess  Home  at  Jerusalem  ;  the  Semi- 
nary at  Smyrna ;  the  Hospital  at  Alexandria ;  and  the 
Seminary  at  Bucharest.  The  number  of  these  Christian 
women  is  about  three  hundred  and  twenty,  of  whom 
upwards  of  one  hundred  are-  at  Kaiserswerth,  or  at 
private  service,  and  the  rest  scattered  over  seventy-four 
stations  in  Europe,  Asia,  Africa,  and  America.  Up- 
wards of  eight  hundred  teachers  have  been  sent  out  to 
educate  many  thousand  children.  The  number  annually 
in  hospital  is  over  six  hundred,  and  upwards  of  fifty 
families  are  supplied  with  sick-nurses ;  in  the  Asylum 
there  are  twenty-four ;  in  the  Orphanage,  thirty  ;  in  the 


318  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

Infant  School,  fifty ;  in  the  Refuge,  twenty ;  in  the 
Seminary,  fifty.  The  number  dependent  on  the  Insti- 
tution for  daily  bread  is  between  seven  and  eight 
hundred." 1 

In  addition  to  the  enterprises  of  Falk  and  Flieduer 
there  has  recently  arisen  another,  which,  by  virtue  of 
the  character  of  its  organization  and  the  number  of  its 
supporters,  has  not  only  promoted  humanitarian  move- 
ments, but  has  contributed  largely  to  the  restoration 
of  a  vigorous  evangelical  faith,  the  suppression  of  sec- 
tarian hostility,  the  stability  of  the  civil  government, 
and  the  decrease  of  the  power  of  the  state  over  the 
church.  We  refer  to  the  Evangelical  Church  Diet 
which  held  its  first  session  in  1848,  and  now  occupies 
a  wide  field  of  operations. 

While  political  revolution  was  imminent  and  no 
one  knew  when  or  where  it  would  burst  in  violence, 
and  while  the  atheistic  and  socialistic  views  of  the  liv- 
ing generation  of  skeptics  were  imbuing  the  minds  of 
many  of  the  young  and  gifted,  it  became  a  matter  of 
serious  concern  whether  or  not  the  tide  of  religious  and 
political  destruction  could  be  stayed.  The  prospect 
was  forbidding.  The  state  had  its  full  burden  in 
watching  its  own  vitality ;  the  church  was  already  sore 
with  the  stripes  of  skepticism.  The  crisis  was  upon  the 
land.  The  work  of  written  apologies  for  Christianity 
had  been  faithfully  discharged,  and  no  one  could  find 
fault  with  those  heroes  who  had  rushed  to  the  rescue 
of  the  evangelical  and  apostolic  oracles.  But  the  time 
for  writing  books  was  now  past,  and  important  con- 
certed practical  measures  were  necessary  to  be  taken, 
or  the  day  would  be  lost  and  generations  might  be  re- 
quired to  repair  the  damage. 

1  Praying  and  Working,  pp.  212-213. 


CONFERENCE    AT   SANDHOF.  319 

For  a  number  of  years  the  Pastoral  Conferences, 
composed  of  small  circles  of  devoted  ministers  and  lay- 
men, had  been  in  existence,  and  kept  their  attention 
carefully  directed  to  the  necessities  of  the  times.  The 
increased  danger  made  the  members  doubly  watchful. 
In  view  of  the  exigency,  some  of  the  leaders  arrived  at 
the  conclusion  to  call  a  church  assembly  of  all  the  lead- 
ing evangelical  sects,  to  take  such  action  as  the  pecu- 
liar condition  of  theology,  religion,  and  politics  might 
require.  During  the  first  six  months  of  the  revolution- 
ary year  of  1848,  three  of  these  pastoral  conferences 
held  their  sessions,  during  which  the  propriety  of  con- 
vening a  general  assembly  was  discussed.  The  confer- 
ence at  Sandhof,  on  the  21st  June,  was  the  occasion  of 
serious  embarrassment.  It  was  well  nigh  concluded 
that  the  whole  enterprise  would  prove  a  failure,  but 
Dr.  Bethmann-Hollweg  arose,  and  by  a  few  stirring 
words  infused  hope  and  zeal  into  every  member.  "  It 
is  the  Lord,  my  friends,"  he  said,  "  who  builds  the 
church.  Never  forget  this.  Whether  the  assembly 
spoken  of  will  accomplish  what  we  desire  and  hope,  no 
one  can  tell.  Our  resolution  must  be  an  act  of  faith. 
Like  Peter,  we  shall  have  to  walk  on  the  sea ;  but  we 
know  also  that  the  Lord  does  not  suffer  any  one  tc 
perish  who  trusts  in  him.  If  we  look  merely  upon 
ourselves  and  upon  the  scattered,  distracted,  and  weak 
members  of  the  church,  we  would  have  indeed  to  de- 
spair. But  if  we  raise  our  eyes  in  faith  to  him  who  is 
the  Lord,  we  will  venture  it." 

The  conference  yielded  to  this  earnest  appeal,  and  a 
general  assembly  was  called,  to  convene  at  Wittenberg, 
in  the  following  autumn.  On  the  21st  of  September, 
the  appointed  day,  five  hundred  of  the  leading  evan- 
gelical theologians  and  laymen  of  Germany  were  pres- 


320  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

ent,  to  adopt  whatever  measures  might  be  thought 
best  to  avert  existing  and  impending  evils.  They  met 
in  the  same  old  gothic  temple  on  whose  door,  three 
centuries  previously,  Luther  had  nailed  his  ninety-five 
theses.  The  exercises  opened  with  prayer,  and  the 
inging  of  Luther's  hymn,  "  Eine  feste  Burg  ist  unser 
Gott "  which  has  been  thus  translated  by  Carlyle  : 

"A  safe  stronghold  our  Gorl  is  still, 
A  trusty  shield  and  weapon ; 
He'll  help  us  clear  from  all  the  ill 
That  hath  us  now  o'ertaken. 
The  ancient  Prince  of  Hell 
Hath  risen  with  purpose  fell ; 
Strong  mail  of  craft  and  power 
He  weareth  in  this  hour, — 
On  earth  is  not  his  fellow. 

"  With  force  of  arms  we  nothing  can, 
Full  soon  Were  we  down-ridden ; 
But  for  us  fights  the  proper  man, 
Whom  God  himself  hath  bidden. 
Ask  ye,  Who  is  this  same? 
Christ  Jesui  is  his  name, 
The  Lord  Zebaoth's  Son ; 
He,  and  no  other  one, 
Shall  conquer  in  the  battle. 

"  And  were  the  world  all  devils  o'«r 

And  watching  to  devour  us, 

We  lay  it  not  to  heart  so  sore, 

Not  they  can  overpow'r  us. 

And  let  the  prince  of  ill 

Look  grim  as  e'er  he  will, 

He  harms  us  not  a  whit, 

For  why  ?     His  doom  is  writ — 

A  word  shall  quickly  slay  him. 

"  God's  word  for  all  their  craft  and  forca, 
One  moment  will  not  linger, 
But  spite  of  hell  shall  have  its  course, 
'Tis  written  by  His  finger. 


THE    CHURCH    DIET.  321 

And  though  they  take  onr  life, 
Goods,  honor,  children,  wife, 
Yet  is  their  profit  small ; 
These  things  shall  vanish  all, 
The  Church  of  God  remaineth." 

The  Church  Diet,  now  in  its  first  session,  was  in 
direct  contrast  with  the  revolutionary  outbreaks  in 
Frankfort  and  other  cities.  True  and  firm  hearts  were 
within  the  walls  of  the  Schlosskirche.  Earnestness, 
seriousness,  humility,  and  faith  were  depicted  on  the 
countenances  of  the  members.  Those  men  had  been 
steadfast  in  the  past,  and  were  now  intent  upon  the 
immediate  and  utter  destruction  of  the  worship  of 
reason.  Doctrinal  differences  were  laid  aside  and  appa- 
rently forgotten.  Men  who  had  been  contending  with 
pen  and  paper  for  many  years  now  grasped  each  other's 
hand  in  friendship,  and,  burying  their  doctrinal  animos- 
ities, stood  close  together  in  a  common  effort  to  recon- 
struct the  temple  of  evangelical  faith  for  the  benefit 
of  their  countrymen.  The  Lutheran  could  not  be  dis- 
tinguished from  his  Reformed  brother,  nor  the  member 
of  the  United  Church  from  the  Moravian.  That  de- 
nominational union  and  fraternal  intercourse  which 
had  been  foreshadowed  in  1817,  were  now  thoroughly 
consummated  for  the  first  time. 

Without,  the  heavens  were  dark  with  the  portents 
of  impending  social  convulsions.  The  signs  were  un- 
mistakable. The  masses  were  intoxicated  with  a  wild 
frenzy  seldom,  if  ever,  surpassed.  They  were  intent 
upon  the  destruction  of  all  constitutional  authority. 
Freedom  from  the  restraints  of  law  and  religion,  the 
ruling  thought  of  the  Continent  during  1848,  was  their 
sole  object.  It  was  clear  that  if  the  populace  could 
overthrow  the   governments  they  would  not  be  long 


322  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

in  putting  an  end  to  all  the  outward  and  traditional  ob- 
servances of  religion.  For  the  middle  and  lower  classes 
had  not  as  yet  become  permeated  by  the  healthful 
leaven  which  had  been  introduced  into  the  theological 
circles  by  the  apologetic  antagonists  of  Strauss  and  hie 
compeers.  The  wisest  statesman  could  not  foresee  one 
day's  deeds  of  that  skeptical,  revolutionary  rabble, 
which  had  already  lost  its  self-control.  Blood  had  ac- 
tually been  shed.  Barricades  had  been  reared  in  the 
streets  of  the  larger  cities.  The  universities  were  pour- 
ing forth  their  hundreds  of  students  and  professors,  to 
take  part  in  the  conflict.  The  revolutionary  crowds 
were  choosing  their  leaders ;  the  royalist  forces  were 
everywhere  fortifying;  princes  were  concealing  their 
plate  and  strengthening  their  hiding-places.  This  was 
the  social  and  political  scene  while  the  five  hundred 
were  praying,  singing,  counseling,  and  comforting  each 
other  over  the  sleeping  dust  of  Luther  and  Melanchthon. 

In  the  days  of  the  imprisoned  Peter,  fetters  were 
strong,  prison  doors  well-barred,  and  the  four  quater- 
nions of  soldier  guards  faithful ;  but  all  these  safeguards 
could  not  resist  the  force  which  lay  in  the  unceasing 
prayers  of  the  church.  So  with  the  revolutionary 
movements  of  the  people  in  1848,  as  opposed  to  the 
Christian  faith  of  the  members  of  the  Church  Diet. 
That  assembly  contributed  more  than  all  other  hu- 
man agencies  to  save  the  German  states  from  utter 
political  and  social  ruin,  and  the  German  church  from 
a  longer  night  and  a  fiercer  storm  than  any  through 
which  it  had  passed. 

The  practical  result  of  the  session  was  an  :  nvita- 
tion  to  all  the  Protestant  churches  of  Germany  to  ob- 
serve the  fifth  of  the  coming  November,  the  Sunday 
following  the  anniversary  of  the  Reformation,  as  a  day 


THE    CHURCH   DIET.  323 

of  humiliation  for  past  unfaithfulness  and  prayer  for  the 
revival  of  true  religion  throughout  the  land.  It  was 
resolved  to  form  a  confederation  of  all  the  German 
churches  adhering  to  the  confessions  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, in  order  to  promote  denominational  unity,  be 
a  mutual  defense  against  Rationalism  and  indiffer- 
ence,  advance  social  reforms,  protect  the  rights  of  the 
church  against  the  encroachments  of  civil  authority,  and 
secure  a  more  intimate  fellowship  with  evangelical 
bodies  outside  of  Germany. 

The  Church  Diet  has  steadily  enlarged  its  sphere 
of  operation  and  gathered  strength  and  influence.  Be- 
sides attracting  great  throngs  of  spectators  from  the 
surrounding  states,  its  members  have  attained  to  the 
number  of  two.  thousand  on  more  than  one  occasion. 
The  providential  prosperity  which  has  attended  its  his- 
tory is  the  best  proof  of  the  real  demand  for  its  in- 
stitution and  for  the  valuable  purposes  it  has  al- 
ready served.  At  ever)7  session  the  most  important 
questions  of  the  day  are  discussed  with  freedom  and 
always  with  great  ability.  Among  other  themes  which 
have  come  up  for  careful  attention,  we  may  mention 
the  relation  of  church  and  state,  the  sanctity  of  the  Sab- 
bath, divorce  and  the  oath,  the  relations  of  Protestant- 
ism to  Romanism,  all  forms  of  skepticism,  and  the 
inner  organization  of  the  church, — such  as  the  renew- 
al of  the  diaconate,  the  possession  of  church  estates, 
and  the  abrogation  or  retainment  of  ecclesiastical  dis- 
cipline.1 

During  the  first  session  of  the  Church  Diet  a  man 
arose  to  speak,  who  indicated  by  his  earnest  manner 
that  he  had  been  thinking  deeply,  and  that  the  subject 
of  his  remarks  was  a  matter  of  no  ordinary  importance. 

1  Scliaff,  Germany,  <&c.    pp.  200-212. 


324  HISTORT    OF   RATIONALISM. 

It  was  John  Henry  Wichern,  founder  of  the  Rough  House 
near  Hamburg.  He  had  just  returned  from  his  labori 
ous  tour  through  the  districts  of  Silesia,  which,  in  addi- 
tion  to  the  demoralizing  revolutionary  excitement,  were 
stricken  by  famine  and  fever.  Whole  villages  were 
depopulated,  not  enough  inhabitants  being  left  alive 
to  bury  the  dead.  Grief  and  despair  reigned  every- 
where.  The  number  of  orphans  had  grown  so  large  that 
Wichern  and  his  few  assistants,  with  all  their  experi- 
ence  and  organizing  power,  were  unable  to  remedy 
their  immediate  wants.  The  scene  having  made  a  pro- 
found impression  upon  his  mind,  he  unburdened  his 
heart  to  the  assembly.  He  described  what  he  had  wit- 
nessed, pictured  the  evils  of  his  people  in  their  true 
light,  and  declared  that  the  church  must  either  do  more 
Christian  missionary  work  at  home,  or  God's  curse 
would  rest  upon  it.  He  therefore  called  upon  the  Diet 
to  incorporate  the  Inner  Mission  into  its  system  as  a 
necessary  measure  to  improve  the  religious  and  social 
prosperity  of  the  country.  He  spoke  as  one  sent  from 
God.  The  assembly  was  mastered,  and  the  reformer's 
plan  adopted.  In  all  the  subsequent  meetings  of  the 
Diet,  about  one  half  of  its  session,  or  two  whole  days, 
have  been  occupied  in  the  management  of  the  Inner 
Mission,  and  in  discussions  on  the  best  means  to  secure 
its  increased  effectiveness. 

But  Wichern  was  not  a  stranger  to  the  members  of 
the  assembly.  The  beneficial  results  of  his  labors  at 
the  Rough  House  had  already  been  felt  throughout 
Europe.  An  old  thatched  cottage,  about  three  miles 
from  Hamburg,  was  the  nucleus  of  his  work.  He 
sought  out  wild,  abandoned  boys,  and  aimed  to  bring 
them  within  the  fold  of  domestic  Christian  influence. 
He  solicited  no  contributions,  but,  adopting  the  method 


INFLUENCE  OF  THE  ROUGH  HOUSE.        325 

of  Miiller,  of  Bristol,  England,  prayed  to  God  that 
funds  necessary  for  bis  great  purpose  inight  be  forth- 
coming by  voluntary  benefactions.  An  associate  was 
so  struck  with  the  repeated  bestowal  of  the  needed 
bupply  that  he  exclaimed,  "  Just  look  !  We  no  sooner 
make  our  purchase  in  faith,  than  the  Lord  stands  be- 
hind us  with  the  purse  to  pay  the  bill."  Gradually  the 
Rough  House  was  surrounded  with  other  buildings, 
while  the  managers  and  those  under  their  care  became 
very  numerous.  The  institution  was  no  longer  a  local 
but  a  national  charity.  It  was  a  centre  of  light  for  the 
abandoned  of  all  lands.  In  1856  there  were  two  hun- 
dred and  sixty  of  its  reformatories  in  existence,  and  the 
work  of  establishing  new  ones  was  going  on  rapidly  in 
Europe  and  other  parts  of  the  world. 

Of  the  gratifying  results  of  the  training  at  the 
Rough  House,  Wichern  says :  "  A  glance  round  the 
circle  of  those  who  were  children  of  the  House  carries 
us  into  every  region  of  the  world,  even  into  the  heart 
of  Australia.  We  find  them  in  every  grade  and  social 
position  ;  one  is  a  clergyman,  another  a  student  of  the- 
ology, and  a  third  a  student  of  law  ;  others  are,  or  were, 
teaching.  We  find  among  them  officers  in  our  German 
armies,  agriculturists,  merchants  in  Germany,  and  at 
least  in  two  other  European  countries,  partners  in  hon- 
orable firms.  They  are  presidents  of  industrial  institu- 
tions, skillful  landscape-gardeners,  lithographists,  and 
xylographists  ;  artisans  scattered  through  many  towns, 
and  wandering  apprentices  in  every  conceivable  craft 
One  is  a  sea  captain,  some  are  pilots,  others  sailors  who 
have  taken  one  voyage  after  another  and  seen  all  the 
seas  of  the  world.  They  are  colonists  in  America  and 
Australia,  and  both  there  and  at  home  there  are  happy 
fathers  and  mothers,  training  their  children  righteously, 


326  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

and  "building  up  their  family  life  after  the  fashion  they 
have  learned  here.  And  there  are  men-servants  and 
women-servants  and  day  laborers ;  and,  besides  those 
who  are  better  off,  there  are  also  the  poorer,  and  such 
as  are  burdened  by  care  either  with  or  without  theii 
own  fault.  Besides,  a  considerable  number  have  died 
at  home  and  abroad  (very  many,  in  proportion,  of  its 
earlier  girls)  ;  and  some  of  those  who  went  out  to  sea 
have  never  returned ;  probably  many  have  found  a 
sea-grave ;  some  have  disappeared  ;  some  suddenly  turn 
up  after  long  years  have  passed.  I  recall  one  who  left 
this  House  twenty  years  ago,  and  of  whom  I  heard 
nothing  for  the  last  ten  years,  until  he  has  now  notified 
himself  as  a  well-doing  master-artisan,  and  a  happy 
father,  in  a  distant  town." 

The  Inner  Mission,  of  which  the  Rough  House  was 
the  origin,  is  not  simply  a  philanthropic  institution. 
Wichern  distinctly  discards  this  limitation,  by  saying 
that  its  object  is  to  do  within  the  sphere  of  Christendom 
what  the  church  is  endeavoring  to  accomplish  in  heathen 
lands,  "  the  propagation  of  pure  evangelical  faith  and 
the  relief  of  physical  suffering," '  as  far  as  it  may  be 
possible  to  reach  these  ends.  "  It  aims  at  a  relief  of  all 
kinds  of  spiritual  and  temporal  misery  by  works  of  faith 
and  charity ;  at  a  revival  of  nominal  Christendom  and  a 
general  reform  of  society  on  the  basis  of  the  gospel  and 
the  creed  of  the  Reformation.  It  is  Christian  philan- 
thropy and  charity  applied  to  the  various  deep-rooted 
evils  of  society,  as  they  were  brought  to  light  so  fear- 
fully in  Germany  by  the  revolutionary  outbreaks  of 
1848.  It  comprises  the  care  of  the  poor,  the  sick,  the 
captive,  and  prisoner,  the  laboring  classes,  the  traveling 
journeyman,  the  emigrants,  the  temperance  movement, 

1  Eerzog's  Feal  Encycloj  ce.lie.     Art.  Inner  Mission. 


GOSSNER   AND    HIS    MISSIONS.  327 

the  efforts  for  the  promotion  of  a  better  observance  of 
the  Lord's  day,  and  similar  reforms,  so  greatly  needed 
in  the  churches  of  Europe." 

But  while  the  German  church  has  been  attentive  to 
its  work  at  home,  it  has  not  been  negligent  of  its  duty 
toward  those  beyond  the  pale  of  Christendom.  As 
long  ago  as  the  beginning  of  the  present  century  there 
was  a  missionary  school  organized  by  Janicke  at  Berlin. 
Others  have  been  established  at  brief  intervals  since 
that  time,  while  missionary  societies  under  the  auspices 
of  both  the  Lutheran  and  Reformed  churches  have 
arisen  in  a  number  of  the  cities  and  larger  towns. 

One  of  the  pioneers  of  the  foreign  mission  enterprise 
was  Gossner,  whose  life,  at  first  full  of  reverses  and  dis- 
appointment, has  lately  come  to  a  triumphant  and  bril- 
liant close.  He  was  originally  a  Roman  Catholic  priest, 
but  his  Pietistic  inclination  precluded  him  from  the 
favor  of  his  less  devout  brethren.  He  went  from  one 
city  to  another,  tarrying  only  a  few  years  in  each. 
From  St.  Petersburg  he  went  to  Berlin,  thence  to  Ham- 
burg, and  afterwards  to  Leipzig.  While  in  the  last 
city  he  quietly  left  the  Romish  fold  and  took  orders  in 
the  Protestant  church.  He  became  pastor  of  the  Beth- 
lehem chapel  in  Munich.  His  effective  life  began  there, 
though  he  was  then  fifty-six  years  of  age.  His  ministra- 
tions were  fascinating,  and  the  people  came  from  all 
sides  to  hear  him  preach. 

On  a  certain  occasion  a  few  young  men,  who  were 
animated  by  a  missionary  spirit,  went  to  him  for  coun- 
sel. They  had  been  turned  away  from  the  missionary 
seminary  as  unfit  for  the  service.  He  declined  to  en- 
courage them  in  their  views.  Still  they  came  in  in- 
creasing numbers.  Finally  he  asked  them,  "  What  shall 
I  do  with  you  ?    Where  shall  I  send  you?    I  don't  know; 


328  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

I  can  do  nothing  for  you."  Their  reply  was,  "  Only 
pray  with  us ;  that  can  do  no  harm ;  if  we  can't  go  we 
must  even  stay.  But  if  it  is  God's  work,  and  his  holy 
will  that  we  go,  he  will  open  the  door  in  his  time." 

Gossner  yielded,  and  instructed  them.  But  theii 
number  enlarged  so  rapidly  that  he  was  compelled  to 
secure  teachers  for  them.  Though  he  was  then  at  that 
time  of  life  when  most  men  think  of  bringing  their 
labors  to  a  close,  he  laid  his  plans  as  if  he  were  exempt 
from  death  for  centuries.  He  founded  his  first  mission 
when  sixty-five  years  of  age.  In  1838  he  sent  out 
eleven  missionaries  to  Australia.  The  following  year 
some  were  despatched  to  India ;  since  which  time  this 
zealous  servant  of  God  has  established  missions  among 
the  Germans  in  the  American  Western  States ;  on  the 
islands  of  the  Southern  seas;  in  Central  India;  on 
Chatham  Island  near  New  Zealand;  among  the  wild 
Kohls  at  Chota  Nagpore ;  on  the  Gold  Coast ;  and  in 
Java,  Macassar,  and  New  Guinea.  He  employed  no 
agencies ;  was  his  own  corresponding  secretary ;  super- 
intended the  instruction  of  all  his  missionaries ;  and 
died  at  the  age  of  eighty-five,  as  full  of  youthful  feeling 
and  perseverance  as  when  a  student  at  Augsburg.  The 
instructions  he  gave  to  his  missionaries  declare  the 
sources  of  his  own  success.  "  Believe,"  said  he,  "  hope, 
love,  pray,  burn,  waken  the  dead !  Hold  fast  by 
prayer.  Wrestle  like  Jacob  !  Up,  up,  my  brethren  ! 
The  Lord  is  coming,  and  to  every  one  he  will  say, 
1  Where  hast  thou  left  the  souls  of  these  heathen  \  with 
the  devil  ? '  Oh,  swiftly  seek  these  souls,  and  enter  not 
without  them  into  the  presence  of  the  Lord."  Gossner's 
beautiful  motto,  found  in  his  diary,  was,  "Pereat  Adam ! 
Vivat  Jesus ! " 

The  missionary  labors  of  Louis  Harms,  of  Hermanns- 


LOUIS    HARMS.  329 

burg,  kingdom  of  Hanover,  demand  the  serious  atten- 
tion of  every  friend  of  humanity.  The  small  beginning 
of  his  enterprise,  the  unexpected  and  unsolicited  means 
placed  at  his  disposal,  the  zeal  with  which  a  plain  rural 
paiish  has  devoted  itself  to  the  missionary  work,  and 
the  remarkable  fruits  attending  every  new  step,  prove 
both  the  power  of  a  single  heart  when  imbued  with  a 
great  thought,  and  the  sad  truth  that  the  church  has 
hitherto  buried  in  a  napkin  some  of  the  most  valuable 
talents  committed  to  her  keeping.  Harms  labored 
among  his  own  congregation  until  every  family  became 
earnest  and  active  in  the  service  of  God.  By  and  by 
their  awakened  fervor  craved  new  avenues  of  usefulness. 
In  1849  twelve  men  presented  themselves  to  their 
pastor  for  the  missionary  work.  This  was  the  beginning, 
and  God  has  so  provided  for  every  emergency  that 
the  entire  enterprise  has  been  favored  with  marked 
prosperity. 

Missionaries  having  been  sent  out  from  time  to  time. 
— all  previously  trained  under  the  careful  superin- 
tendence of  Harms  himself, — it  was  at  last  suggested 
that  a  missionary  ship  be  built  by  the  Hermannsburg 
congregation.  The  timbers  were  soon  on  the  stocks,  the 
vessel  completed,  and  its  charge  on  board.  That  boat 
has  since  become  a  messenger  of  light  to  many  heathen 
minds.  The  missionary  work  of  Harms  has  cost  nearly 
one  hundred  and  nineteen  thousand  crowns.  It  is  still 
in  vigorous  prosecution,  the  paiish  increasing  every 
year  both  in  its  gifts  and  in  its  capacity  to  give. 
The  stations  established  in  heathen  lands,  especially 
New  Hermannsburg  in  Africa,  have  been  judiciously 
selected,  successfully  conducted,  and  are  now  centres 
of  truth  to  large  areas  of  unevangelized  territory. 

The  return  of  spiritual  life  to  the  German  church  is 


330  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

indicated  by  other  useful  agencies  than  those  imme- 
diately connected  with  humanitarian  and  missionary 
work.  Societies  for  the  distribution  of  Bibles  and 
cheap  religious  literature  have  been  oiganized  in  Berlin, 
Hamburg,  Frankfort-on-the-Main,  and  all  the  larger 
cities. 

The  Gustavus  Adolphus  Union  was  instituted  foi 
the  extension  of  Protestantism  without  regard  to  sec- 
tarian differences.  Deriving  its  name  from  the  illus- 
trious Swedish  champion  of  Protestantism,  who  died  on 
the  victorious  plain  of  Llitzen,  its  constant  object  has 
been  to  continue  what  he  began.  Its  principal  scene 
of  labor  has  been  among  the  dispersed  Protestants  who 
are  living  in  abject  poverty  and  wretchedness  through- 
out Roman  Catholic  countries.  The  Union  seeks  them 
out,  brings  them  to  the  light,  and  supplies  their  necessi- 
ties. Then  it  bands  them  into  a  congregation,  and, 
whenever  the  laws  permit,  supplies  them  with  the  gos- 
pel and  religious  literature.  It  goes  into  every  open 
door,  contributing  the  renewal  of  religious  vitality  both 
by  forming  new  churches  and  strengthening  feeble  ones. 
For  a  time  it  was  seriously  impeded  by  the  participa- 
tion of  radical  Rationalists  ;  but  they  having  been  judi- 
ciously sifted  out,  it  has  since  pursued  a  steady  career 
of  usefulness. 

Prelate  Zimmermann  became  superintendent  in  1849, 
since  which  time  its  receipts  have  increased  and  its 
field  of  operation  widened.  Its  twenty-second  session 
was  held  in  1865,  in  Dresden,  Saxony.  The  receipts  of 
the  previous  year  amounted  to  one  hundred  and  ninety- 
five  thousand  thalers,  which  were  expended  for  the  re- 
lief of  seven  hundred  and  twenty-three  churches  or  com- 
munities. One  of  the  late  reports  shows  that  of  the 
societies  benefited  by  its  agency,  one  wras  in  Portugal, 


RESULTS    OF   BENEFICENCE.  331 

two  in  Italy,  one  in  Algiers,  four  in  the  United  States, 
four  in  Switzerland,  sixteen  in  France,  thirty-four  in 
Poland,  fifty-six  in  Hungary,  one  hundred  and  nine  iu 
the  upper  provinces  of  Austria,  and  the  remainder  in 
the  other  German  states. 

These  enterprises  do  not  interfere  with  each  other. 
Every  one  has  its  own  path  of  duty  and  its  individual 
attractions.  But  the  amount  of  good  effected,  not  only 
by  those  we  have  mentioned,  but  by  others  which  are 
every  year  taking  form,  is  of  incalculable  influence  upon 
indifference  and  Rationalism.  Their  ministry  is  beauti- 
ful in  the  extreme,  for  they  are  restoring  what  has  been 
nearly  destroyed.  One  night,  while  John  Huss  was 
awaiting  martyrdom  in  the  dungeon  at  Constance,  he 
dreamed  that  he  had  painted  pictures  of  Christ  around 
the  walls  of  his  little  Bethlehem  oratory  in  Prague. 
By  and  by  he  saw  them  all  erased  by  the  violeDt  hands 
of  the  angry  pope  and  his  bishops.  While  in  great  dis- 
tress at  his  ill  fortune,  he  dreamed  again.  But  this  time 
there  entered  a  large  number  of  accomplished  artists, 
who  restored  all  the  pictures  to  more  than  their  original 
beauty.  Then  there  came  a  great  concourse  of  people, 
who,  having  surrounded  the  painters,  cried  out :  "  Now 
let  the  popes  and  bishops  come ;  they  shall  never  efface 
them  more ! " 

The  German  church  is  now  using  its  artist-hand  in 
reproducing  the  long-erased  images  of  beauty  and  faith. 
Every  believer  within  her  own  fold  and  throughout 
Christendom  should  unite  in  the  solemn  protest  that 
m  bright  color  shall  be  erased  again. 


CHAPTER  XIV. 

HOLLAND:  THEOLOGY  AND  RELIGION  FROM  THE  SYNOD 
OF  DORT  TO  THE  COMMENCEMENT  OF  THE  PRESENT 
CENTURY. 

The  only  country  whose  national  existence  and  in- 
dependence are  due  to  the  Reformation  is  Holland. 
To  be  the  first  to  break  the  triumphant  power  of  the 
Spanish  army  would  have  been  glory  enough  for  any 
ordinary  ambition,  but  no  sooner  was  her  independence 
declared  than  she  gave  signs  of  great  commercial  and 
intellectual  activity.  Her  Hud  sons  navigated  every 
sea  and  planted  the  Dutch  flag  on  shores  not  ther 
traced  on  any  map  of  the  world ;  her  manufacturers 
supplied  all  markets  with  the  fruit  of  their  labor  and 
ingenuity ;  her  soldiers  were  a  match  for  any  European 
force ;  her  De  Ruyters  and  Van  Tromps  knew  how  to 
contend  with  the  Blakes  of  England ;  her  William  of 
Orange,  whom  she  gave  to  her  British  neighbor,  made 
as  good  a  ruler  as  ever  lived  in  Whitehall ;  her  scien- 
tific men  founded  the  systems  which  have  continued  in 
use  to  the  present  time ;  her  philosophers  revolutionized 
the  thinking  of  the  civilized  world ;  her  universities 
were  the  seat  of  the  most  thorough  humanistic  re- 
searches of  the  age ;  her  painters  founded  new  schools 
of  art,  and  vied  with  the  Italian  masters ;  her  theolo- 
gians  gave   rise   to   controversies  which    brought    all 


EISE    OF    KATIONALISM.  333 

churches  and  their  champions  within  the  scene  of  con- 
flict ;  and  her  pulpit  orators  acquired  a  celebrity  which, 
in  spite  of  the  inflexibility  of  the  language,  was  second 
only  to  that  enjoyed  by  the  most  renowned  preachers 
of  France  and  Great  Britain. 

After  Holland  had  fallen  a  victim  to  her  political 
partisanship,  she  gradually  disappeared  from  public 
observation.  Her  greatness  in  the  past  would  have 
been  well  nigh  forgotten  if  Prescott  and  Motley  had 
not  recalled  it.  But  the  judgment  of  the  world  con- 
cerning her,  in  her  present  state,  is  not  more  flattering 
than  that  of  the  author  of  Hudibras,  who,  in  addition 
to  venting  his  spleen  against  the  people,  employs  his 
wit  upon  the  irrational  land,  calling  it, 

"  A  country  that  draws  fifty  feet  of  water, 
In  which  men  live  as  in  the  hold  of  nature ; 
And  when  the  sea  does  in  upon  them  break, 
And  drowns  a  province,  does  but  spring  a  leak." 

But  while  the  political  status  of  Holland  has  been 
inferior  and  unobserved  during  the  last  century  and  a 
half,  her  important  theological  and  religious  career, — 
covering  a  much  longer  period  than  that, — is  a  theme 
of  deep  interest  to  every  student  of  the  history  of  the 
church. 

Rationalism  arose  in  Holland  by  means  of  seme 
agencies  similar  to  those  which  had  produced  it  in 
Germany.  The  previous  disputes  and  barren  ministra- 
tions of  the  clergy  made  the  soil  ready  for  any  theologi- 
cal error  that  might  urge  its  claims  with  force.  But 
the  repulsive  technicalities  of  Germany  were  not  equally 
prevalent  in  Holland,  and  scholasticism  refused  to 
affiliate  with  the  Reformed  much  longer  than  with  the 
Lutheran  church. 


334  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

But  when  the  synod  of  Dort,  which  held  its  sessions 
in  1618-1619,  pronounced  those  dogmas  by  which  the 
Arminians  were  excluded  from  the  Dutch  church,  it 
established  a  standard  of  orthodoxy.  In  proportion  as 
Ihe  synod  gained  the  favor  of  the  people,  the  Bible 
came  into  use,  but  more  to  serve  the  cause  of  polemics 
than  of  edification.  Hugo  Grotius,  Erasmus,  and 
other  exegetical  writers  who  had  manifested  inde- 
pendence in  their  interpretation  of  the  Scriptures,  were 
regarded  with  great  suspicion  and  distrust.  The  door 
for  the  entrance  of  scholasticism  was  thrown  wide  open. 
To  use  the  language  of  a  writer  of  that  day,  "  The  doc- 
trines were  cut  after  the  fashions  of  Peter  Lombard, 
Thomas  Aquinas,  and  Scotus ;  while  the  power  of  the 
word  of  God  was  denied,  and  the  language  of  Babel 
was  heard  in  the  streets  of  Jerusalem."  Theologians 
made  an  idle  display  of  learning.  Imaginary  distinc- 
tions, definitions,  and  divisions  became  the  food  of  the 
youth  in  schools  of  every  grade,  and  of  the  congrega- 
tions in  all  the  churches.  The  books  which  have  come 
down  to  us  from  that  period  are  weapons  against 
Atheism,  Deism,  Socinianism,  and  every  other  heresy 
that  had  arisen  during  the  history  of  Christianity. 
Whether  light  was  created  on  the  first  day ;  whether  it 
was  an  attribute  or  a  substance ;  whether  Adam,  after 
the  formation  of  Eve,  was  a  rib  the  worse ;  whether 
the  knowledge  of  the  unconverted  may  be  called  spirit- 
ual knowledge ; — these  were  some  of  the  topics  of  la- 
bored sermons.  It  was  announced  as  a  most  gratifying 
result  of  accurate  research  that  the  soul  of  a  boy  was 
created  forty  days  after  conception,  while  that  of  a  girl 
required  eighty. 

There  were  exceptions  to  the  general  sterility  of  the 
pulpit  and  lecture-room.    Alting,  professor  at  Groniugen, 


CORRUPTION    OF   ETHICS.  335 

enjoyed  the  sobriquet  of  "  Biblical  Theologian,"  because 
he  made  the  Scriptures,  and  not  scholasticism,  the  basis 
of  his  inquiries.  Students  from  foreign  lands  flocked  to 
his  auditorium,  and  received  the  leaven  of  his  earnest 
and  reverent  spirit.  Yet  his  candidates  were  distrusted, 
and  he  had  great  trouble  in  defending  himself  against 
repeated  charges  of  heresy. 

But  another  important  feature  of  the  prevalent 
theology  was  the  corruption  of  ethics.  The  doctrines 
of  grace,  of  which  the  church  of  Holland  had  always 
been  the  defender,  left  no  room  for  an  ethical  system. 
What  the  unconverted  man  does  is  nothing  but  sin ; 
all  are  equally  guilty ;  and  all  that  we  have  of  good  is 
from  God.  If  we  be  disposed  to  ask,  "  Does  not  this 
view  make  men  careless  and  impious  ? "  the  answer 
comes  back  from  the  Catechism,  "  No ;  for  it  is  impos. 
sible  that  those  who  are  planted  in  Christ  should  be 
without  the  fruits  of  gratitude."  This  opinion  had  a 
strong  tendency  to  isolate  theology  still  more  than 
scholasticism  had  done,  from  all  practical  interests. 
"  What  shall  we  do  ?  "  was  an  idle  question,  for,  as  a 
matter  of  course,  man  could  do  nothing.  But  "  what 
must  I  be?"  was  the  all-important  and  searching  in- 
quiry. Thus  ethics  glided  into  radical  casuistry,  and, 
in  this  form,  became  united  with  the  scholastic  theology. 

The  homiletic  literature  of  that  clay  indicates  the 
unification  very  clearly.  Besides  being  a  tirade  against 
schismatics  of  all  classes,  the  discourse  was  often  a  discus- 
sion of  grammatical  principles,  accompanied  with  a  de- 
scription of  the  spiritual  condition  of  every  hearer. 
After  the  singing  of  the  hymn  in  the  middle  of  its  de- 
livery, the  people  adjusted  themselves  to  hear  the  appli- 
cation in  which  their  cases  were  to  be  stated.  There  was 
1b%$t,  an  enumeration  of  "  heretical  sinners,"  divided  into 


336  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

numerous  groups  ;  second,  the  "  unconverted,"  separated 
into  many  subdivisions ;  and  third,  the  many  flocks  of 
Christians.  It  was  in  this  part  of  the  sermon  that  the 
casuistry  of  the  preacher  had  full  play,  and  he  who 
could  subdivide  his  congregation  in  such  a  way  that 
every  auditor  could  not  mistake  his  own  proper  position, 
received  great  honor  from  his  brethren.  The  hearer 
waited  until  he  "  heard  his  name  called,"  after  which  he 
might  sink  back  again  to  his  dreams.  Even  to  this  day, 
on  leaving  a  Dutch  church,  it  is  a  common  question 
among  the  separating  members  to  inquire  of  each  otherj 
"  Have  you  heard  the  dominie  call  your  name  ?  "  They 
mean  by  this,  "  Have  you  heard  the  pastor  so  describe 
people  that  you  could  not  mistake  the  class  to  which 
you  belong  ? " 

We  have  now  stated  the  two  sources  from  which 
many  of  the  troubles  and  defections  of  the  Church 
of  Holland  have  sprung.  On  the  one  hand  was 
dogmatism,  with  its  endless  distinctions,  begotten  and 
fostered  by  Scholasticism.  On  the  other,  practical 
mysticism,  cherished  into  strength  by  a  disgusting  sys- 
tem of  casuistic  ethics.  The  reaction  against  those  prev- 
alent errors  was  Rationalism.  They  were  the  domes- 
tic fountains  of  that  species  of  error. 

But  there  were  men  who,  when  they  saw  the  evils 
their  venerated  Church  was  suffering,  threw  themselves 
into  the  breach,  and  contended  for  her  deliverance. 

Cocceius,  the  celebrated  opponent  of  Scholasticism, 
was  born  in  Bremen,  in  1603.  He  studied  all  branches 
of  theology;  but  having  been  instructed  in  Hebrew  by 
a  learned  Rabbi  of  Hamburg,  he  applied  himself  espe- 
cially to  the  Scripture  languages.  In  1629  he  visited 
the  Dutch  University  of  Franeker,  and  wrote  tracts  on 
the  Talmud,  with  extracts  therefrom  in   German.     He 


THE    COCCEIAN    CONTROVERSY.  337 

also  composed  Greek  verses  with  great  ability.  Re- 
turning the  same  year  to  Bremen,  he  there  became  Pro- 
fessor of  Sacred  Philology.  In  1636  he  was  called  to 
Franeker,  to  take  the  Hebrew  first,  and  afterward  the 
Greek  chair.  Still  later  he  taught  theology.  His  exe- 
getical  works,  being  far  in  advance  of  any  which  had 
appeared  at  that  time,  acquired  great  renown  for 
their  author.  In  1649  he  was  invited  by  the  Curators 
of  the  University  of  Leyden  to  take  charge  of  the  de- 
partment of  theology  in  that  seat  of  learning.  His 
long-cherishecl  antipathy  to  Scholasticism  was  well 
known,  but  he  pursued  his  course  in  quiet  until  1658, 
when  he  was  daringly  assailed. 

Having  developed  his  opinion  that  the  Sabbath  had 
not  been  instituted  in  Paradise,  but  in  the  desert,  and 
was  not  therefore  binding  upon  Christians,  Cocceius 
was  buffeted  by  a  host  of  writings,  in  which  he  was 
charged  with  every  imaginable  species  of  skepticism. 
The  literature  of  the  Cocceian  controversy  abounds 
in  as  violent  and  harsh  expressions  as  have  disgraced 
theological  history  at  any  time.  Yet  Cocceius  was  not 
without  ardent  disciples  and  friends,  who  knew  as  well 
how  to  give  as  to  receive  severe  thrusts.  As  an  illus- 
tration of  the  method  of  the  discussion,  we  mention 
the  title  of  a  book  written  in  favor  of  Cocceius: 
"  Satan's  Defense  of  himself,  on  being  questioned  why  he 
had  instigated  some  persons  to  distort  and  vilify  the  or- 
thodox, wise,  and  edifying  Writings  of  the  Blessed 
Professor  Cocceius,  &c,  &c?  In  this  work  Satan,  on 
being  questioned  whom  he  fears  most,  replies  that  "  no 
one  has  done  more  harm  to  the  power  of  darkness  than 
Cocceius, — not  even  Calvin." 

The  States  of  Holland  wrote  to  the  Synod  not  to 
discuss  the  Sabbatarian  question,  and  to  forbid  the  com- 


338  HISTOEY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

batauts  from  further  controversy.  There  were  other 
charges  brought  against  Cocceius,  however,  one  of 
which  was  his  distinction  between  d(pt6ig  djuaQricov  and 
Jidgtoig  dfiaQTiav,  by  which  he  held  that  the  former 
was  a  complete  pardon,  but  the  latter  incomplete,  and 
only  in  force  under  the  old  dispensation.  He  placed 
the  whole  system  of  theology  under  the  figure  of  a 
covenant.  There  were  two  covenants,  one  of  works, 
and  the  other  of  grace.  The  latter  had  a  threefold 
economy :  before  the  law ;  after  the  law  ;  and  under  the 
Gospel.  The  institutions  under  the  first  economy  were 
symbolical  of  the  second ;  and  these  again  of  the  third. 
Everything  was  a  shadow  of  some  higher  and  future 
good.  Forgiveness  was  no  exception  to  the  rule.  That 
of  the  Old  Testament  was  naQtcig  preparing  the  way 
for  the  complete  acptoiz  of  the  New. 

There  was  one  point  of  agreement  between  Cocceius 
and  Des  Cartes:  their  common  aim  of  emancipation 
from  Scholasticism.  But  the  former  strove  by  revela- 
tion, the  latter  by  philosophy  to  secure  the  result. 
It  has  been  charged  that  Des  Cartes  influenced  Cocceius, 
since  the  school  of  that  philosopher  was  growing  into 
power  at  the  very  period  of  the  Cocceian  tendencies. 
But  the  charge  is  groundless.  Des  Cartes  stood  on  the 
ground  of  reason  alone,  while  Cocceius  planted  himself 
upon  the  Scriptures.  Thus  there  was  a  world-wide  dif- 
ference between  the  two  men  at  the  very  starting-point 
of  their  systems ;  a  difference  which  becomes  more  ap- 
parent at  every  additional  step  in  the  study  of  their 
sentiments. 

If  Cocceius  was  opposed  when  he  arrayed  the  Bible 
against  Scholasticism,  Descartes  might  be  expected  to 
meet  with  increased  resistance  when  he  used  only  the 
weapon  of  philosophy.     "  Aristotle,"  said  the  theologi 


DES    CARTES    AND    VOETIUS.  339 

cal  world  of  Holland,  "  was  a  heathen,  it  is  true,  but 
then  he  afterwards  became  soundly  converted  to  Catho- 
licism. In  due  time  he  was  transformed  into  a  most  ex- 
emplary Protestant.  Yet  this  Des  Cartes  is  a  down- 
right Jesuit,  and  a  very  demon  let  loose  from  the  in- 
fernal world.  His  whole  system  commences  with  doubt 
and  is  pervaded  by  it.  How  dangerous  then  to  our  or- 
thodoxy is  the  attack  of  this  Catholic  Arminian  !  If 
his  assumption  concerning  skepticism  be  correct  our 
whole  theology  becomes  overturned  ;  for  then  the  elect 
would  have  ground  for  doubting  their  own  salvation, 
which  would  be  opposed  to  the  infallible  doctrine  of 
the  final  perseverance  of  the  saints.  And  to  crown  the 
scene  of  this  Des  Cartes'  audacity,  he  holds  that  the 
earth  and  not  the  sun  turns  round,  which,  as  good 
father  Brakel  says,  'is  a  sure  sign  that  the  man's  head 
is  turned.'" 

Voetius  was  the  leader  of  the  forces  against  the  pre- 
tentious philosophy.  A  book,  issued  anonymously  by  a 
friend  of  Spinoza,  applying  a  little  more  logic  to  the 
Cartesian  idea  of  substance,  caused  him  to  obtain  addi- 
tional ground.  For  the  new  school  which  he  was  com- 
bating already  rested  under  the  imputation  of  Crypto- 
Atheism.  The  hand  of  the  government  interfered,  and 
Cartesianism  appeared  to  be  extinguished.  But  it  had 
its  secret  admirers,  especially  in  the  academies  of  North- 
ern France,  where  its  adherents  occupied  almost  every 
chair  of  instruction.  Its  last  representative  was  Euard 
Andala,  1701,  at  whose  death  Newton  and  Leibnita 
came  into  power. 

The  place  assigned  to  reason  by  Cocceius  led  his  foe* 
to  accuse  him  of  Cartesianism.  He  made  the  intellect 
the  interpreter  of  Scripture  in  this  sense ;  that,  since 
the   words   of  the   Bible   are  capable   of  many  mean- 


340  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

ings,  reason  must  decide  which  are  proper  and  which 
improper,  and  not  be  forgetful  to  derive  as  much 
thought  as  possible  from  the  sacred  text ;  "  for,"  said  he, 
"the  Scripture  is  so  rich  that  an  able  expositor  will 
bring  more  than  one  sense  out  of  it."  He  aimed  to  find 
Christ  and  his  church  in  each  biblical  book  ;  but  he  in- 
terpreted every  statement  as  allegorical,  typical  or  pro- 
phetical. Reason  as  applied  by  him,  became  a  light  to 
expose  many  sides  of  truth  which  had  never  been  per- 
ceived by  the  reigning  dogmatism.  The  result  of  his 
labors  was  the  overthrow,  in  many  minds,  of  philosoph. 
ical  Scholasticism,  but  the  enthroning  of  biblical  Scho- 
lasticism in  its  stead.  His  allegorical  method  of  expo- 
sition led  his  followers  into  gross  aberrations. 

The  Cocceians  and  Voetians  were  now  the  two  great 
theological  parties  which  attracted  to  their  standards 
nearly  every  man  of  promise  or  note  throughout  Holland. 
The  former  were  the  Progressives,  the  latter  the  Conserv- 
atives. The  Cocceians  favored  the  entrance  of  new 
ideas,  and  effected  the  junction  of  philosophy  and  the- 
ology. The  Voetians  professed  to  desire  a  reform,  but 
their  conduct  was  not  in  harmony  with  their  avowal. 
While  they  agreed  with  their  antagonists  in  calling  the 
Bible  the  fountain  of  light  and  truth,  they  held  that 
the  fathers  of  Dort  and  the  Reformers  had  digested  its 
contents  and  explained  its  meaning  in  most  excellent 
summaries,  and  that  "it  was  for  us  to  light  our  candles 
at  those  great  lights  of  the  church."  They  were  very 
properly  called  "  Tradition arians,"  a  name  of  which 
they  were  proud.  One  of  their  writers  said,  "We 
have  caught  up  the  last  voices  and  words  of  our  ances- 
tors, those  Fathers  of  whom  we  are  now  glad  to  call 
ourselves  the  echo."1 

1  Owenusters. 


DISCEPLF.3    OF    COCCFJUS.  341 

The  Cocveians  studied  tlie  original  text,  and  took 
leave  to  differ  often  from  the  authority  of  the  trans- 
lators. Their  opponents  attached  great  value  to  the 
translation,  and  sometimes  called  it  "  inspired."  The 
former  delayed  not  to  appropriate  the  fruits  of  the  latest 
researches  in  science  and  criticism,  in  certain  cases  lay- 
ing aside  fragments  of  the  text  in  favor  of  the  sugges- 
tions of  the  most  recent  editions  of  Cocceius.  To  the 
Voetians  this  conduct  was  not  much  better  than 
atheism.  They  hurled  all  the  curses  and  plagues 
of  the  Bible  against  every  one  who  whispered  that 
there  could  be  a  mistake  in  the  transcription  of  a 
word  or  even  of  a  Hebrew  vowel-point.  The  Coc- 
ceian  brought  all  his  questions  into  the  pulpit,  where 
he  preached  them  in  a  manner  more  adapted  to 
addle  the  heads  of  his  hearers  than  to  edify  their 
hearts.  Hebrew  grammars  were  published  for  the 
laity.  Even  women, — among  whom  was  Anna  Maria 
Schurmann,  the  adherent  and  friend  of  Voetius, — 
were  able  to  read  the  Bible  in  the  original  tongues. 
Nor  did  they  hesitate  to  take  part  in  the  angry  disputes 
of  theologians.  The  Cocceians  ran  wild  with  their 
principles  of  fanciful  interpretation.  Every  prophecy 
was,  in  their  view,  a  treasury  of  allegorical  facts  yet  to 
come  to  pass,  and  to  be  heartily  endorsed.  The  Voe- 
tians prided  themselves  on  their  literalism,  and  named 
Hugo  Grotius  as  their  master.  Yet  they  held  that 
they  never  could  swallow  his  abominable  Arminianism. 

The  history  of  hermeneutics  in  all  times  shows  that 
there  is  but  one  step  from  the  literal  to  the  allegorical. 
So  with  the  Voetians.  They  indicated  a  disposition  to 
yield,  and  at  length  became  more  fanciful  and  allegorical 
than  their  adversaries  had  been.  They  sought  the  in- 
terior sense  of  the  text,  but  would   be  limited   by  no 


342  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

rules.  They  spiritualized  the  entire  contents  of  the 
Bible.  He  who  could  draw  most  profit  and  instruction 
from  a  word  was  the  best  teacher,  for  a  scribe  must 
brino;  forth  from  his  "  heart  "  both  new  things  and  old. 
Not  reason,  nor  logic,  but  experience  and  feeling  must 
explain  every  word  of  God.  The  Bible  literally  be- 
came all  things  to  all  men.  The  "  inner  light  "  was  its 
great  interpreter.  Many  people  despised  scientific 
students  of  the  truths  of  revelation,  calling  them  "  slaves 
of  the  letter," — a  term  which,  singularly  enough,  is  still 
in  common  use  among  the  uneducated  members  of  the 
church  of  Holland.  The  Bible,  taken  in  its  real  charac- 
ter, was  banished  and  an  artificial  volume  placed  in  its 
stead.  Practical  mysticism  was  now  fairly  inaugurated. 
Even  conventicles  spread  throughout  the  country,  and 
ignorant  men  who  knew  how  "  to  speak  to  the  hearts  of 
the  people  "  were  infinitely  preferred  to  any  educated 
minister. 

The  strife  ran  very  high.  While  there  was  an 
assimilation  of  the  Voetians  to  the  Cocceians  in  the 
application  of  the  allegorical  principle  of  interpretation, 
there  was  a  moral  retrogression  of  the  latter  which 
greatly  reduced  their  strength.  This  arose  from  the 
defective  views  of  Cocceius  on  the  sanctity  of  the  Sab- 
bath. His  disciples  carried  his  unfortunate  opinion  far 
enough  to  gain  the  favor  of  the  worldly  and  immoral 
classes.  The  freest  customs  and  gayest  fashions  were 
imported  from  France,  and  Cocceian  ministers  made  it 
their  boast  that  they  designed  to  keep  up  with  the 
times.  More  spiritual  adherents  became  disaffected  by 
the  growing  impiety.  Koelman,  a  layman,  and  Loden- 
steyn,  a  clergyman,  gave  the  alarm  that  the  kingdom 
of  Christ  had  become  secularized  and  corrupt.  The 
latter  would  not  baptize  the  children  of  unbelievers  nor 


THE    FRENCH   HUGUENOTS.  343 

L^ld  aiiy  communion  with  them.  De  Labadie,  formerly 
a  Jesuit  but  afterward  a  French  minister,  blew  the 
clarion  of  reform.  The  watchword  on  all  sides  was, 
u  Separate  ye  my  people.'1  Nothing  but  the  stringency 
of  his  rules  and  the  counter-efforts  of  the  government 
j >re vented  the  pious  masses  from  joining  the  reformer. 
Mystical  sects,  influenced  by  Jacob  Boehme  and 
Spinoza,  appeared  here  and  there.  Chiliastic  ideas 
spread  abroad  in  proportion  as  men  despaired  of  the 
speedy  regeneration  of  the  church  through  natural  in- 
strumentalities. All  was  commotion  and  disruption 
and,  for  a  time,  everything  seemed  to  be  on  the  down- 
ward course  to  ruin. 

But  the  imminence  of  the  danger  brought  a  speedy 
and  violent  reaction.  The  persecution  of  the  French  Hu 
guenots  drove  them  across  the  boundary  line.  The  Dutch 
true  to  their  traditional  hospitality,  received  them 
with  open  arms.  The  guests  returned  their  welcome 
by  diffusing  new  spiritual  life  through  the  hospitable 
country.  The  Cocceians  laid  off  their  worldly  habits. 
Days  of  fasting  and  prayer  were  appointed  by  the  civil 
and  ecclesiastical  authorities,  while  an  increasing  love 
for  the  church,  as  bequeathed  by  the  fathers,  was  over- 
spreading the  land.  The  attachment  to  what  was  old 
and  time-honored  became  a  glowing  enthusiasm.  Sharp 
distinctions  between  parties  disappeared.  Men  who 
had  formerly  been  violently  arrayed  against  each  other 
now  expressed  a  disposition  to  unite  in  one  common 
effort  to  restore  the  church  to  her  former  purity. 
Brokel,  Imytegeld,  Groenewegen,  Lampe,  and  Vitringa, 
representing  different  and  opposing  forces,  united,  in  a 
harmonious  effort  to  reform  the  heritage  of  Christ. 
Their  labors  were  fruitful,  for  the  people  greatly  hon- 
ored them   and  earnestly  followed  their  good  advice. 


344  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

The  theological  candidate  had  previously  been  asked 
two  questions,  which  had  an  important  bearing  upon 
his  subsequent  life.  One  was,  "  Do  you  fear  God  ? " 
The  other  was,  "  To  what  party  do  you  belong  \  "  The 
latter  inquiry  was  now  abolished.  In  every  university 
the  long-prevalent  partisanship  subsided.  But  under 
the  improved  state  of  religion,  a  Voetian  was  invariably 
placed  in  the  chair  of  dogmatic  theology,  a  Cocceian  in 
that  of  exegesis,  and  a  follower  of  Lampe  in  charge  of 
practical  theology.  The  pulpits  were  likewise  supplied 
with  an  equal  number  of  ministers  from  the  ruling 
parties. 

After  1738  the  religious  progress  of  the  church  of 
Holland  became  more  tardy.  Attention  to  spiritual 
life  decreased,  while  more  care  was  bestowed  upon  the 
improvement  of  theological  training.  The  department 
receiving  greatest  favor  was  the  linguistic  study  of  the 
sacred  text.  Professor  Schultens  was  the  first  to  apply 
himself  to  the  Hebrew  cognate  languages,  especially  to 
the  Arabic.  The  critical  works  of  Mill  and  of  Beno;el 
found  their  way,  in  1707  and  1734,  into  the  Dutch 
universities.  John  Alberti,  inaugurated  professor  at 
Leyden  in  1740,  made  the  Arabic  his  special  branch, 
and  in  five  years'  time  that  study  became  so  popular 
that  Valkenaer  found  it  necessary  to  warn  young  men 
against  yielding  too  freely  to  its  fascinations.  The 
direction  of  theological  taste  to  another  department  of 
inquiry  increased  the  indifference  to  party  distinctions. 
Henceforth  the  terms  Voetian  and  Cocceian  became 
more  unfrequent  and  unimportant. 

The  theological  tendency  toward  the  study  of  the 
languages  of  the  Bible  had  the  single  unfortunate  result 
of  increasing  that  puerile  literalism  which  had  appeared 
in  only   sporadic    forms  during  several  preceding  cen 


EXCESSIVE    LITERALISM.  345 

turies.  It  was  the  element  antagonistic  to  the  allegori- 
cal and  spiritual  interpretation  of  the  text. 

Peter  Abrest,  the  Dutch  Ernesti,  taught  in  Gron- 
ingen  in  1773.  His  work  on  Sacred  Criticism  as  the 
best  Safeguard  of  Theology,  showed  the  value  he  at- 
tached to  a  thorough  grammatical  and  historical  study 
of  the  Scriptures.  His  labors  were  in  harmony  with 
the  long-standing  literal  interpretation  of  the  text, 
though  he  would  elucidate  scientifically  what  had  pre- 
viously been  treated  mystically.  Even  before  the 
Reformation,  the  Dutch  theologians  were  preeminently 
textual  in  their  habits  of  study,  and  in  subsequent 
times,  they  built  up  their  systematic  and  polemical 
theology  by  the  stress  laid  upon  the  "  words  "  of  the 
inspired  volume. 

Nowhere  was  the  proverb  "  Every  heretic  has  his 
letter " *  so  common  and  yet  so  true  as  in  Holland. 
The  old  quartos  we  have  received  from  the  seventeenth 
and  former  half  of  the  eighteenth  centuries  will  ever 
remain  marvels  of  literalism  gone  mad.  They  were 
gotten  up  like  a  geometry,  with  theorems  and  proposi- 
tions, followed  by  a  lengthy  array  of  texts  transcribed 
without  one  word  of  comment.  The  sermons  published 
at  that  time  were  divided  and  subdivided,  their  appear- 
ance being  similar  to  a  page  of  a  dictionary.  They 
wTere  interlarded  with  Latin,  Greek,  and  Hebrew  letters 
and  figures  of  various  sizes,  all  being  literal  quotations 
from  the  Bible,  and  proving  nothing  except  that  the 
preacher  had  made  free  use  of  his  Concordance.  The 
consequence  of  so  much  textual  citation  in  books  and 
sermons  was  the  increased  popularity  of  theology. 

The  systematic  works  of  the  seventeenth  century 
were  familiar  to  the  masses.     What  was  said  of  the 

1  "  Jedere  Ketter  heeft  z.yn  Letter." 


346  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

theological  disputes  of  the  third  century,  that  bakers' 
and  shoemakers'  shops  reechoed  the  words  '  homoousian ' 
and  *  homoiousian  '  might  be  applied  to  the  period  of 
which  we  speak.  Even  now,  there  exists  in  Hollano 
a  remarkably  popular  acquaintance  with  theology. 
"  I  have  seen,"  says  a  clergyman,  "  fishermen  who  could 
pass  examination  for  licentiate's  orders  at  one  of  your 
American  schools,  and  beat  the  best  of  the  candidates 
in  the  handy  use  of  texts  and  definitions."  1  The  de- 
scendants of  the  Dutch  settlers  in  the  United  States 
are  still  familiar  with  Brokel ;  while  if  you  ask  any 
Hollander  what  he  thinks  of  John  a  Marck's  Marrow 
of  Divinity,  he  will  probably  indicate  very  soon  that 
he  has  committed  nearly  the  whole  of  it  to  memory. 
Francken's  Kernel  of  Divinity  is  equally  well-known 
to  the  masses,  for  he  belonged  to  the  Voetian  party. 
He  was  eminently  practical  and  ascetical.  He  was  not 
without  a  vein  of  mysticism,  as  may  be  inferred  by  the 
title  of  one  of  his  works :  "  Earnest  Request  of  the 
Bridegroom  Jesus  Christ  to  the  Church  of  Laodicea  to 
celebrate  the  Royal  Marriage  Feast  with  Him? 

During  the  entire  period,  dating  back  to  the  Synod 
of  Dort,  there  was  an  undercurrent  of  Rationalism, 
which,  though  sometimes  daring  to  make  its  appear- 
ance, observed  in  general  the  strictest  secrecy.  Carte- 
sianism  made  it  bolder  for  a  time,  and  in  party  strug- 
gles it  ventured  to  take  sides.  But  the  keen  eye  which 
the  church  ever  turned  toward  heresy  made  it  timid. 
Yet  it  was  a  power  which  was  only  waiting  for  a  strong 

'  Extract  from  a  letter  of  Rev.  P.  J.  Hoederaaker,  dated  September, 
1864.  The  correspondence  of  this  accomplished  scholar,  who  has  been  some 
time  in  connection  with  the  University  of  Utrecht  and  in  intimate  relations 
with  the  best  minds  of  Holland,  has  been  invaluable  to  us  in  the  prepara- 
tion of  the  Chapters  on  Dutch  Theology. 


BALTHAZER    BEKKER.  34" 

ally  in  order  to  make  open  war  upon  the  institutions 
which  the  heroes  of  Holland  had  wrested  from  Philip 
II.  of  Spain. 

Balthazer  Bekker,  "  a  man  who  feared  neither  man 
nor  devil,"  was  the  first  Rationalist  in  the  Dutch 
church.  He  was  a  disciple  of  Des  Cartes,  and  an  ardent 
lover  of  natural  science,  particularly  of  astronomy.  He 
published  a  work  on  Comets,  in  which  he  combated  the 
old  notions,  prevalent  among  his  countrymen,  that  a 
comet  was  always  the  precursor  of  heresies  and  all 
manner  of  evils,  and  that  it  should  be  made  the  occasion 
for  a  general  call  to  prayer  and  fasting.  Bayle,  of  Rot- 
terdam, a  reputed  atheist,  harmonized  with  Bekker. 
Bekker  separated  between  the  sphere  of  reason  and 
that  of  religion.  Whenever  they  meet  each  other  it 
should  be  as  friends  and  co-workers.  Religion  has 
greater  dignity,  but  that  gives  it  no  right  to  disregard 
the  authority  of  reason.  When  the  Scriptures  speak 
in  an  unnatural  way  of  natural  things,  it  is  high 
time  for  the  operation  of  reason.  This  idea  led  to 
the  accommodation-theory,  which,  applied  to  the  doc- 
trine of  spirits  in  his  book,  The  World  Bewitched 
(1691),  resulted  in  Bekker's  excommunication.  His 
Cartesianism,  which  had  taught  him  to  distinguish  so 
rigidly  between  the  two  "substances,"  matter  and 
spirit,  as  to  deny  all  action  of  the  one  upon  the  other, 
led  him  to  assert  that  spirits,  whether  good  or  bad, 
have  no  influence  upon  the  bodies  of  men.  The  Jews 
ascribed  all  exertion  of  power  to  angels,  through  whom 
God  worked  mediately.  Jesus  adapted  himself  to  these 
ideas  of  his  times. 

Bekker  loved  to  trace  all  spirit-stories  to  some 
plausible  origin,  and  then  to  hold  them  up  to  the  ridi- 
cule of  the  masses.     To  give  substantial  proof  of  his 

24 


348  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

disbelief  in  all  spiritual  influence,  he  parsed  many 
nights  in  graveyards,  on  which  occasions  he  manifested 
a  sacrilegious  hardihood,  which,  besides  making  him 
the  wonder  of  his  time,  could  only  be  accounted  for  by 
supposing  that  he  kept  up  secret  correspondence  with 
the  devil.  "  For,"  reasoned  the  Dutch  theologians,  "  iu 
not  all  this  one  of  Satan's  tricks  to  make  us  believe  that 
he  does  not  exist,  so  that  he  may  capture  us  unawares?" 
On  account  of  Bekker's  acknowledged  merit,  the  gov- 
vernment  took  his  part,  and  at  his  death,  paid  his  salary 
to  his  family.  Voltaire  said  of  him :  "  He  was  a  very 
good  man,  a  great  enemy  of  the  devil  and  of  an  eternal 
hell.  ...  I  am  persuaded  that  if  there  ever  existed 
a  devil,  and  he  had  read  Bekker's  World  JBewitched, 
he  would  never  have  forgiven  the  author  for  having  so 
prodigiously  insulted  him."  In  the  library  at  Utrecht 
there  are  ten  quarto  volumes  containing  reviews  of  this 
book,  in  which  Bekker's  personal  appearance,  said  to 
have  been  very  unprepossessing,  receives  a  goodly  por- 
tion of  the  censure.  His  body  was  believed  by  his 
contemporaries  to  be  a  most  excellent  portrait  of  the 
devil  himself. 

Professor  Roell,  of  Franeker  University,  started  from 
the  Cocceian  principle  of  freedom  of  thought.  In  his 
inaugural  address,  he  announced  it  as  his  opinion,  that 
Scriptures  cannot  be  interpreted  in  any  safe  way  except 
by  the  dictates  of  reason ;  that  reason  is  the  grand  in- 
strument by  which  we  arrive  at  a  knowledge  of  all 
truth ;  and  that  it  is  the  great  authority  for  the  deter 
mination  of  all  theoretical  and  practical  religion.  This 
author  is  best  known  to  theologians  by  his  ideas  on  the 
sonship  of  Christ.  He  held  that  Christ  could  not  be 
a  son,  for  then  there  would  be  a  time  when  he  came 
into  being  from  nonentity.     The  term  "  son  "  could  not 


GROWTH    OF    RATIONALISM.  349 

signify  unity  of  essence  with  the  Father.  "  Brother n 
would  be  a  more  correct  word.  The  only  sense  in 
which  Christ  could  be  son  was  as  the  divine  ambas- 
sador. These  assumptions  brought  upon  Roell  the 
chai'ge  that  he  was  a  Socinian  and  an  Arminian.  His. 
principal  opponent  was  Vitringa. 

nationalistic  tendencies  increased  in  both  number 
and  force  in  proportion  as  the  church  decreased  in  the 
zeal  which  it  had  possessed  at  the  close  of  the  Cocceiau 
and  Voetian  controversy  by  virtue  of  the  immigration 
of  the  exiled  Huguenots  of  France. 

Van  Os,  of  Zwolle,  attacked  the  accepted  covenantal 
theory,  and  the  doctrine  of  immediate  imputation.  The 
latter  was  a  mere  scholastic  opinion,  not  accepted  among 
the  doctrines  of  the  church,  but  yet  maintained  by  the 
people  as  a  requisite  of  orthodoxy.  Having  gone  thus 
far,  Van  Os  proceeded  to  deny  a  form  of  infralapsarian- 
ism,  which  was  termed  "justification  from  eternity." 
Many  prominent  but  bigoted  minds,  having  long  enter- 
tained these  ultra  ideas  he  was  endeavoring-  to  refute, 

O  7 

and  some  having  gone  so  far  as  to  attempt  their  intro- 
duction into  a  revised  edition  of  the  confession  of  faith, 
Van  Os  was  censured  for  heresy.  But  he  took  the  first 
opportunity  to  preach  the  Protestant  doctrine  that 
every  one  had  the  right  to  test  the  church- creed  by  the 
word  of  God.  In  the  opinion  of  the  people  this  course 
amounted  to  a  total  renunciation  of  the  creed,  and  he 
was  accordingly  dismissed.  Another  dispute,  which 
created  attention  and  attracted  the  suspicion  of  the 
watchful  church,  was  on  toleration.  All  who  dared  to 
defend  even  the  word,  were  stigmatized  as  unpardonable 
heretics,  for  Voltaire  had  just  written  in  its  favor* 
Pastor  De  Cock  placed  himself  in  danger  of  excommuni- 
cation because  he  was  so  rash  as  to  advocate  it.     He 


350  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

was  only  rescued  by  the  interference  of  the  government 
and  by  luckily  publishing  that  he  distinguished  be- 
tween Christian  and  ecclesiastical  toleration. 

There  were  controversies  concerning  minor  points 
of  doctrine,  but  amid  them  all,  it  was  very  perceptible 
that  there  was  a  well -organized  disposition  to  break 
through  the  stringent  rules  of  order,  and  escape  from 
the  control  of  the  vigilant  guardians  of  the  church. 
But  whoever  departed  a  hair's  breadth  from  the  doc- 
trinal system  laid  down  in  the  confession  of  faith  was 
charged  with  skepticism.  Van  der  Marck's  employ- 
ment  of  a  single  term  cost  him  his  professorship.  But 
he  was  afterwards  restored,  and  died  in  1800.  Kleman 
wrote  a  book,  in  1774,  on  the  Connection  between  Grace 
and  Duty,  in  which  he  held  that  the  right  use  of  those 
intellectual  and  spiritual  gifts  which  God  has  imparted 
to  us  is  the  condition  of  his  further  blessings.  He  was 
•compelled  to  retract  his  heresy.  Ten  Broek,  of  Rot- 
terdam, considered  only  the  death  of  Christ  expiatory, 
while  his  colleagues  wished  the  same  to  be  said  of  every 
act  of  his  life.  Because  that  rash  theologian  ventured 
to  use  the  word  "  world,"  in  John  iii.  16,  in  its  broadest 
sense  instead  of  circumscribing  it  to  "  the  world  of  the 
elect,"  he  had  the  choice  either  to  recant  or  give  up 
his  office.     The  government  interfered  and  saved  him. 

But  while  all  these  influences  were  at  work  in  the 
church  of  Holland,  a  still  stronger  current  was  setting 
in  from  England.  The  impolitic  ecclesiastical  rigor  be- 
came an  enemy  to  truth,  and  contributed  powerfully  to 
the  development  of  Rationalism.  Never  have  church 
and  state  presented  a  more  complete  contrast.  The 
government  of  Holland  was  the  most  liberal  in  the 
world,  but  the  ecclesiastical  authorities  have  not  been 
^m*passed  in  bigotry  during  the  whole  historv  of  Pro*- 


ENGLISH    DEISTS    IN    HOLLAND.  351 

estantism.  Holland  was  the  refuge  and  borne  of  the 
exile  of  every  land  who  could  succeed  in  planting  his 
feet  upon  her  dyke-shores.  But  the  church  of  that 
country  was  so  illiberal  that  the  use  of  a  term  in  any 
other  than  the  accepted  sense  was  a  sufficient  ground 
of  excommunication. 

The  intimate  relations  in  which  Holland  stood  to 
England  by  the  accession  of  William  and  Mary  to  the 
British  throne  afforded  an  opportunity  for  the  import- 
ation of  English  Deism.  Nowhere  on  the  Continent 
was  that  system  of  skepticism  so  extensively  propagated 
as  among  the  Dutch.  The  Deists  took  particular  pains 
to  visit  Holland,  and  were  never  prouder  than  when 
told  that  their  works  were  read  by  their  friends  across 
the  North  Sea.  On  the  other  hand,  Holland  supplied 
England  with  the  best  editions  of  the  classics  then 
published  in  Europe,  some  of  which  are  still  unsur- 
passed specimens  of  typography. 

The  works  of  Hobbes  appeared  in  Amsterdam  in 
1668,  his  De  Give  having  been  issued  as  early  as  1647. 
Locke's  Epistle  on  Toleration  was  translated  into  Dutch 
in  1689,  while  his  Essay  on  the  Human  Understanding 
was  rendered  not  only  into  that  language,  but  also  into 
the  French.  Collins  and  Chubb  were  read  scarcely  less 
by  the  Hollander  than  by  the  Englishman.  Locke 
spent  seven  years  in  Holland,  and  Toland  studied  two 
years  in  Leyden.  Shaftesbury  resided  among  the 
Dutch  during  the  year  1691,  and  made  a  second  visit 
in  1699.  The  adversaries  of  the  Deists  enjoyed  the 
same  privilege,  and  did  not  hesitate  to  improve  it. 
Burnet  became  a  great  favorite  in  Holland.  Lardner, 
who  spent  three  years  there,  was  well  known  to  the 
reading  circles,  for  his  works  were  translated  into  their 
tongue.     Lyttleton.  Clarke,  Sherlock,  and  Bentley  re 


352  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

ceived  no  less  favor.  Leland  enjoyed  a  cordial  intro- 
duction by  the  pen  of  Professor  Bonnet,  while  Tillotson 
had  his  readers  and  admirers  among  even  the  boatman 
in  the  sluggish  canals  of  Ley  den,  Rotterdam,  and  Am- 
sterdam. But  the  Deists  of  England  gained  more  favor 
in  Holland  than  their  opponents  were  able  to  acquire. 
The  former  were  bold,  while  the  latter  were  timid  and 
compromising.  Consequently  a  brood  of  domestic 
Deists  sprang  up,  who  borrowed  all  their  capital  from 
their  English  fathers.  Patot,  a  follower  of  Lord  Her- 
bert of  Cherbury,  referred  to  Christ  by  asking,  "  What 
do  we  trouble  ourselves  about  the  words  of  a  car- 
penter ?  "  He  wrote  his  Fable  of  the  Bees,  to  ridicule 
the  doctrines  of  the  atonement  and  resurrection. 

But  as  English  Deism  was  reinforced  by  the  atheism 
of  France  before  the  invasion  of  Germany  by  either,  so 
did  the  same  copartnership  take  place  in  reference  to 
Holland. 

The  works  of  the  French  skeptics  were  as  copiously 
distributed  in  Holland  as  at  home.  Many  of  them  were 
issued  by  Dutch  publishing  houses.  Des  Sandes  pub. 
lished  his  ^Reflections  on  Great  Men,  in  Amsterdam ; 
Toussaint's  Morals  gained  the  honor  of  more  than  one 
edition  in  the  same  city ;  and  De  Prades,  who  had  been 
condemned  by  the  Sorbonne  on  account  of  the  thesis 
by  which  he  tried  to  gain  his  baccalaureate,  published 
his  Defense  in  Amsterdam  in  1753.  It  was  in  this 
work  that  he  compared  the  miracles  of  Jesus  to  those 
of  ^Esculapius.  Hase  says  that  it  was  in  Holland,  and 
not  in  London,  that  the  Systems  de  la  Nature  first  came 
to  light.  Rousseau's  jfimile,  which  had  been  burned  by 
the  sheriffs  in  France,  had  the  largest  liberty  afforded 
it  beyond  the  northern  frontier.  The  Dutch  would  not 
be  sated  with  Volney  until  they  had  published  and 
lead  three  editions  of  his  works. 


COLD   TREATMENT    OF    VOLTAIRE.  353 

Voltaire  was  very  popular  throughout  the  country. 
A.  number  of  periodicals  arose,  having  the  avowed 
object  of  disseminating  the  views  of  himself  and  his 
friends  wherever  the  Dutch  language  was  spoken.  La 
Mettrie,  driven  from  France,  here  found  a  home.  Vol 
taire  barely  escaped  the  Bastille  by  fleeing  thither, 
though  when  he  left  the  land  which  had  given  him 
shelter,  he  bade  it  the  graceful  farewell :  "  Adieu  canals, 
ducks,  and  common  people !  I  have  seen  nothing 
among  you  that  is  worth  a  fig !  "  But  Voltaire  had 
cause  to  cherish  no  very  pleasant  feelings  toward  Hol- 
land. Her  great  men  had  received  him  coldly.  His 
excessive  vanity  was  never  so  deeply  wounded  as  by 
the  sober  Dutchmen.  Desiring  to  make  the  acquaint- 
ance of  Boerhaave,  the  most  celebrated  physician  in 
Europe,  he  called  upon  him,  stating  that  he  "  wished 
to  see  him."  Instead  of  becoming  rapturous  at  the 
Frenchman's  compliment,  the  plain  old  Leyden  burgher 
coolly  replied  :  "  Oh,  sit  as  long  as  you  please,  sir,  and 
look  at  me ;  but  excuse  me  if  I  go  on  with  my  writing." 
On  offering  one  of  his  philosophical  books  to  Professor 
Gravesande,  the  latter  returned  it  to  Voltaire  in  a  few 
days  with  only  this  comment :  "  You  are  a  poet,  sir ; 
a  very  good  poet,  indeed !  " 

The  chief  disaster  resulting  from  the  French  skep 
tical  writings  was  not  so  much  the  skeptical  indoctrina- 
tion of  the  people  as  the  general  diffusion  of  a  light  and 
frivolous  indifference  to  all  religion.  Through  the  in- 
fluence of  France  the  Dutch  became  enslaved  to  vicious 
customs,  taste,  modes  of  thought,  and  conversation. 
The  etiquette  of  the  Parisians  was  domesticated  among 
theii  northern  imitators.  The  works  published  in 
Holland  were  mere  reproductions  from  the  French,  and 
many  of  them  were  written   in   that   language.     The 


354  HISTOKY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

simplicity,  truthfulness,  and  attachment  to  old  forms, 
which  had  so  long  existed,  gave  place  to  a  general  spirit 
of  innovation.  The  reverential  and  determined  spirit 
that  had  enabled  their  forefathers  to  gain  their  inde- 
pendence was  no  longer  apparent  in  the  children.  Lib- 
eral to  a  fault,  Holland  was  now  paying  the  penalty  of 
her  excessive  hospitality.  Sensuality  and  superficial 
epicureanism  were  at  once  the  taste  and  the  destruction 
of  many  of  the  young  minds  of  the  country. 

When  the  people  of  Holland  began  to  awaken  to 
their  condition,  they  were  seized  with  a  spirit  akin  to 
despair.  The  coldness  of  the  church  amid  all  the  at- 
tempts to  destroy  the  basis  of  her  faith  appeared  as  the 
chill  of  death.  When  the  learned  societies  offered  a 
prize  in  1804  for  the  best  work  on  The  Cause  and  Cure 
of  Religious  Apathy,  they  could  not  find  one  to  crown 
with  their  medal.  Holland,  finding  herself  unable  to 
keep  pace  with  the  quick  step  of  French  recklessness 
and  irreligion,  bethought  herself  of  finding  refuge  in 
Gallic  politics.  "  Our  people,"  says  Bronsveld,  "  then 
became  a  second-hand  on  the  great  dial  of  the  French 
nation."  Old  men  are  now  living  who  have  not  forgot- 
ten those  days  when  all  distinctions  vanished,  when 
the  only  name  heard  was  "  burgher,"  and  when  the 
skeptical  and  daring  favorites  of  the  people  obtain- 
ed seats  in  the  national  assembly.  Religion  was 
driven  from  the  elementary  schools  and  also  from  the 
universities.  The  chairs  of  philosophy  and  theology 
were  united,  for  it  was  enjoined  that  no  doctrine 
should  be  taught  in  future  but  natural  theology  and 
ethics.     The  Sabbath  was  abolished. 

Then  came  Napoleon  Bonaparte.  He  presented  his 
plea,  was  received  with  open  arms,  and  returned  his 
thanks  by  draining  the  country  of  its  treasures.     It  was 


DELIVERANCE    FBOM   FRANCE.  355 

only  when  the  people  felt  the  physical  sting  of  his  wars, 
and  saw  the  indescribable  moral  dearth  pervading  their 
country,  that  they  resolved  to  go  back  to  the  old  paths 
and  the  good  way,  and  to  abandon  all  deference  to 
French  examples.  On  the  occasion  of  the  great  jubilee 
of  1863,  which  commemorated  deliverance  from  the 
yoke  of  France,  there  was  heard  throughout  Holland 
but  one  note  of  joy :  "  Thanks  be  unto  the  Lord  who 
hath  delivered  the  nation  from  the  ruin  which  it  had 
prepared  for  itself,  and  into  which  infidelity  had 
flurirtit'  " 


CHAPTEK    XV. 

HOLLAND  CONTINUED:  THE  NEW  THEOLOGICAL  SCHOOLS, 
AND  THE  GREAT  CONTROVERSY  NOW  PENDING  BETWEEN 
ORTHODOXY  AND  RATIONALISM. 

The  commencement  of  the  new  era  in  the  religion 
and  politics  of  Europe  was  the  restoration  of  peace  after 
the  battle  of  Waterloo.  Wherever  the  French  bayonet 
had  won  territory  to  the  sceptre  of  Napoleon,  it  opened 
a  new  and  unobstructed  sway  for  the  propagation  of 
the  skepticism  taught  by  the  followers  of  Voltaire.  But 
the  same  blow  that  repulsed  the  armies  of  France 
produced  an  equally  disastrous  effect  upon  her  infidelity. 
A  sincere  desire  began  to  animate  many  persons  living 
in  the  subjugated  countries  that,  with  the  restoration  of 
their  nationality,  there  should  also  be  the  return  of  the 
pure  faith  of  their  fathers. 

Holland  had  passed  through  nineteen  years  of  hu- 
miliating subjugation,  and  she  did  not  possess  religious  vi- 
tality enough  to  take  full  advantage  of  the  rare  oppor- 
tunity presented  by  the  peace  of  1814.  The  people 
turned  from  France  to  Germany,  and  thought  they  found 
relief  in  the  Rationalism  of  Semler  and  Paulus. 

Orthodoxy  was  inactive.  The  Mennonites  had  be 
come  so  mystical  that  they  rather  aided  than  arrested 
the  incoming  error.  All  the  Socinian  elements  gained 
strength.     The  discipline  of  the  church  was  exercised 


THE   NEW    HYMNS.  357 

with  such  laxity  that  immorality  was  unrebuked.  The 
Constitution  of  1816,  by  its  reunion  of  church  and 
state,  threw  a  great  weight  in  the  balance  with  Ration- 
alism. AVilliam  of  Orange  wielded  a  power  over  the 
church  which  he  dared  not  exercise  upon  any  other 
corporation.  The  Synods  and  Classes  were  driven  back 
to  forms,  and  allowed  almost  no  freedom.  Then  came 
the  notorious  Pastoral  Declaration,  established  by  the 
Synod  of  the  Hague  in  1816,  which  no  longer  required 
of  candidates  for  the  ministry  an  unqualified  sub- 
scription to  the  ancient  Confessions.  Their  adherence 
to  them  was  to  be  "  in  so  far  as  "  these  formularies  of 
faith  agree  with  the  word  of  God,  not  "  because  "  they 
thus  agree.  That  little  change — quatenus  substituted 
for  quia — cast  off  all  restrictions  from  the  future 
preaching  of  the  Dutch  clergy.  The  orthodox  preach 
ers  became  very  indignant  at  the  official  measure,  and 
a  bitter  theological  controversy  arose. 

Previous  to  this  outbreak,  a  rupture  had  occurred 
upon  the  introduction  of  the  new  hymns,  ordered  by 
the  Synod  of  North  Holland  in  1796.  When  presented 
for  approval  in  1807,  they  were  violently  rejected  by 
the  orthodox,  who  held  that  the  version  of  Psalms 
which  they  had  been  singing  many  years  was  all  that 
was  needed.  Besides,  there  was  a  perceptible  Rational- 
ism in  many  of  the  new  hymns.  They  were  foreign  to 
the  Dutch  heart.     Such  a  one  as 

a  Yonder  will  I  praise  the  Friend, 
Who  here  has  shown  me  truth," 

was  not  likely  to  elicit  a  response  from  those  who  de- 
sired an  improved  religious  spirit.  To  fill  up  the  cup  of 
their  misfortunes,  the  use  of  the  hymns  was  made  ob- 
ligatory.    But  they  hoped  that  when  the  Prince   of 


358  HISTOEY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Orange  came  back,  lie  would  restore  the  venerated 
Psalms.  Yet  on  his  return  he  not  only  issued  an  official 
recognition  of  the  new  Hymn-Book,  but  expressed  his 
warm  approval  of  it.  The  congregation  had  no  choice 
left  but  to  refuse  to  sing  altogether,  or  to  use  but  one 
and  the  same  hymn  from  one  Sabbath  to  another. 

The  Revival  and  the  Secession.     There  was  an  un- 
der-current of  deep  religious  feeling  among  the  masses 
which  was  unsupported  by  theological  education.     The 
lectures  in  the  universities  were  similar  to  those  delivered 
by  the  old  school  of  German  Supernaturalists.  The  prev- 
alent orthodoxy  was  moderate  and  equivocal  at  best. 
Not  much  hope  of  awakening  could  be  derived  from  it. 
The  Bible  was  held  to  be  the  supreme  authority ;   the 
historical  character  of  its  accounts  was  confessed ;  and 
the  infallibility  of  its  communications  was  maintained. 
Miracles,  and  prophetical  and  apostolical  inspiration  were 
accepted.     But  there   was  a  neglect  of  the  nature  of 
this  authority,  together   with   a   manifest   indifference 
to  the  paramount  value  of  all  the  great  doctrinal  pos- 
sessions of  the  church.     There  was  no  scientific  defense 
of  the  pillars  of  faith,  and  no  attempt  to  discuss  the  true 
ground  of  miracles,  and  their  inherent  accordance  with 
divine  laws.     Christian  philosophy  was  totally  ignored. 
Such  natural   theology  as  had  been  produced  by  the 
school  of  Leibnitz  and  Wolf,  and  more  recently  improved 
by  the  moral  arguments  of  Kant,  was  the  chief  object  of 
study,  and  had  been  made  obligatory  since  the  restora- 
tion of  the  Dutch  universities  in  1816.     There  was  a 
general   compromise   between   revelation   and   the  old 
philosophy.1     Supernaturalism  was  stagnant,  and  gave 
no  promise  of  future  progress. 

1  D.   Chantepie  de  la  Saussaye.     La  Grise  Religieuse  en  Holland*. 
Souvenirs  et  Impressions,  pp.  24-29. 


THE   NEW   SCHOOL.  359 

While  the  church  of  Holland  was  in  this  deplorable 
condition,  God  raised  up  a  few  men  to  be  the  instru- 
ments of  new  life.  They  were  endowed  with  great  tal- 
ents, moral  heroism,  and  a  steady  purpose  to  elevate 
every  department  of  ecclesiastical  organization.  The 
Holy  Spirit  accompanied  their  labors.  The  leaders  of 
the  group  were  Bilderdyk,  Da  Costa,  Dr.  Capadose, 
and  subsequently  Groen  Van  Prinsterer. 

The  first  stood  at  the  head  of  the  modern  school  of 
Dutch  poetry,  and  was  one  of  the  greatest  poets  ever 
produced  by  Holland.  His  conceptions  were  vivid,  his 
style  impassioned,  his  diction  unequaled  by  any  of  his 
predecessors,  and  his  moral  life  irreproachable.  Having 
a  conservative  mind,  he  opposed  each  indication  of  rev- 
olution with  every  weapon  at  command.  He  was  pro- 
foundly learned  in  the  classics,  history,  and  jurispru- 
dence. Apart  from  all  his  efforts  for  the  religious 
awakening  of  the  people,  he  was  the  representative  of 
the  old  Holland  nationality.  An  ardent  despiser  of 
the  French  spirit,  imparted  by  the  fatal  principles  of 
1789,  he  was  equally  opposed  to  the  Eationalism  of  Ger- 
many. He  believed  that  if  new  life  were  kindled  in 
the  Dutch  heart,  it  could  not  be  derived  from  without, 
but  by  a  return  to  the  pure  teachings  of  the  fathers  of 
the  Reformation  in  Holland. 

Da  Costa  and  Dr.  Capadose  were  Jews.  The 
former  looked  upon  the  condition  of  the  country  from 
the  Israelitish  standpoint  developed  in  his  Israel  and 
the  Nations.  He  believed  in  the  millennium,  and  saw  in 
it  the  divine  cheerfulness  of  history,  and  the  relief  from 
surrounding  evils.  He  is  well  described  by  one  of  his 
countrymen  as  "  the  Israelite  who  raised  himself  above 
the  church  of  the  Gentiles ;  the  Israelite  who  testifies 
against  this  church ;   the  Israelite  who    announces  the 


360  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

glory  of  this  church.1'  He  was  a  popular  and  spirited 
poet,  excelling  even  his  friend  Bilderdyk  in  the  lyrical 
character  of  his  verses.  He  hated  Rationalism  in  every 
form,  and  resisted  whatever  would  interpose  any  au- 
thority between  the  conscience  of  man  and  the  word  of 
God.  His  Israelitish  view  made  him  reject  the  second- 
ary authority  of  the  confessions  of  faith,  and  did  not 
permit  him  to  attribute  anything  more  than  a  relative 
value  to  the  church  of  the  Gentiles,  "  the  church  before 
the  millennium.11 

Groen  Van  Prinsterer  appeared  at  a  time  when  the 
revival  had  taken  definite  shape,  but  he  attached  himself 
to  its  interests  and  contributed  more  than  any  one  else  to 
its  development.  He  is  one  of  those  decided  characters 
who  are  mentioned  by  friends  and  enemies  with  great 
animation.  Studiously  rejecting  the  individuality  taught 
him  by  the  school  of  Vinet,  and  reticent  of  his  personal 
opinions,  he  has  incurred  the  animadversions  of  some  of 
his  warmest  admirers.  Being  a  man  of  continual  litera- 
ry and  political  activity,  he  has  taken  part  in  all  the  im- 
portant movements  of  his  times.  He  is  the  Guizot  of 
Holland.  Though  banished  for  a  time  from  his  seat  in 
the  States  General  by  the  Catholics,  Revolutionists,  and 
Rationalists,  he  did  not  intermit  his  labors  to  lead  back 
the  masses  to  evangelical  piety.  His  powerful  influ- 
ence has  been  in  favor  of  home  missions  and  similar 
agencies.  He  has  comprehended  the  revival,  in  all  its 
scope,  more  clearly  than  any  one  else.  He  says  of  it 
that  "it  was  neither  Calvinistic,  nor  Lutheran,  nor 
Mennonite,  but  Christian.  It  did  not  raise  for  its  stand- 
ard the  orthodoxy  of  Dort,  but  the  flag  of  the  Reforma- 
tion, the  <vord  of  God.  And  though  it  found  the  doc- 
trine of  salvation  admirably  expressed  in  our  symbolical 
books,  appreciated  a  rule  of  education  so   conformable 


REUNION    OF   CHRISTIAN    FRIENDS.  361 

to  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  opposed  the  doctrines  of 
the  church  and  the  duty  of  her  ministers  to  the  usurpa 
tions  of  nationalism,  it  never  thought  of  accepting  and 
imposing  the  absurd  and  literal  yoke  of  formularies 
with  an  absurd  and  puerile  anxiety.  A  spirit  of  Chris- 
tian fraternity  predominated  over  the  old  desires." 

The  direct  associated  result  of  the  revival  was  the 
.Reunion  of  Christian  Friends.  It  was  presided  over  by 
Groen  Van  Prinsterer,  and  held  semi-annual  sessions  in 
Amsterdam  from  1845  to  1854.  Its  monthly  journal, 
The  Union,  or  Christian  Voices,  was  conducted  by 
Pastor  Heldring,  a  warm-hearted  man  who  has  made 
himself  illustrious  in  the  annals  of  beneficence  by  his 
labors  for  home  missions,  by  his  foundation  of  an  asylum 
for  little  neglected  girls,  and  by  similar  charitable  works. 

Other  pastoral  associations  sprang  up  in  consequence 
of  the  new  life,  but  some  of  them  failed  in  a  few  years  be- 
cause of  the  want  of  a  common  symbol  of  faith.  Groen 
Van  Prinsterer  hailed  with  joy  every  indication  of  Chris- 
tian unity.  He  hoped  that  by  this  unity  the  church 
might  be  built  up  in  its  holy  faith.  From  1850  to  1855 
he  edited  The  Netherlander,  a  political  and  ecclesiastical 
review.  It  was  in  this  periodical  that  he  eulogized  the 
revivals  of  other  countries,  and  ranked  the  leaders  of 
them  among  the  greatest  ornaments  of  history.  The 
labors  of  the  French  and  Swiss  theologians,  MM.  Bost, 
Malan,  Merle  d'Aubigne,  Gaussen,  Grandpierre,  and 
Monod  find  in  him  a  most  appreciative  admirer.1 

1  Da  Costa,  in  his  biography  of  Bilderdyk,  enumerates  other  partici- 
pants in  the  revival  in  the  Dutch  Church ;  among  whom  were  the  two 
brothers  Van  Hogendorp,  Nicolaas  Carbasius,  J.  T.  Bodel,  Nyenhuis, 
Brugmans,  Elout,  Ban  Van  Garaeren,  Baron  Van  Wassanaer,  Willem  de 
Olercq,  the  poet,  and  author  of  a  work  on  the  Influence  of  Southern  Litera- 
ture on  that  of  Holland ;  Van  der  Kemp,  author  of  an  admirable  Biogra- 
phy of  Maurice  of  Nassau  ;  and  Koenen,  author  of  an  historical  work  ou 
the  Refugees  in  Holland. 


362  HISTOBY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

The  movement  inaugurated  by  Bilderdyk,  Da  Costa, 
and  Capadose  led  to  an  important  secession  from  the 
Church  of  Holland.  There  were  men  who  saw  the  ne- 
cessity of  revival  on  a  large  scale,  but  in  their  zeal  for 
Confessionalism,  they  went  far  ahead  of  their  leaders. 
Their  cry  was,  "Let  us  leave  Babel,  and  build  up  a  new 
Church."  De  Cock  and  Scholte  were  the  first  to  sound 
the  note  of  secession.  They  were  joined  by  such  men 
as  Brummelkamp,  Van  Reeh,  Gezelle,  and  Van  Velsen. 
This  party  rallied  around  the  old  Calvinistic  symbols, 
and  De  Cock  stood  in  their  van.  As  early  as  1829, 
when  he  became  preacher  in  the  little  village  of  Ulrum, 
he  distinguished  himself  for  his  zealous  ministry.  People 
came  from  a  distance  of  eighteen  miles  to  hear  his  sermons. 
He  soon  indoctrinated  them  so  thoroughly  that  they 
would  no  longer  permit  their  children  to  be  baptized 
by  "  unbelievers."  This  brought  him  immediately  into 
conflict  with  the  rules  of  the  Church.  Two  pamphlets 
appeared  against  him,  which  he  answered  in  his  Defensv 
of  the  True  Reformed  Doctrine,  and  of  the  True  Re- 
formed ;  or,  the  Sheepcot  of  Christ  attacked  by  two 
Wolves.  Another  pamphlet  appeared  with  his  appro- 
val, in  which  the  new  hymns  were  called  "  Sirens 
Songs."  The  result  was  that  he  was  suspended,  and  in 
1835  excommunicated.  In  the  same  year  he  published 
his  curious  book,  entitled  "The  so-called  Evangelical 
Hymns,  the  Eyeball  of  the  misguided  and  deceived 
Multitude  in  the  Synodical-Keformed  Church  :  Yes,  of 
some  Children  of  God,  in  their  blindness,  and  while  they 
have  become  drunk  by  the  wine  of  their  whoredom, 
tested,  weighed,  and  found  wanting:  Yes,  opposed  to 
all  our  forms  and  doctrines,  and  the  word  of  God;  by 
H.  De  Cock,  uuder  the  Cross  because  of  Christ." 

The    expulsion   of  De   Cock   attracted    many   new 


THE   SEPARATISTS.  363 

friends  to  his  standard.  At  the  close  of  1834  a  Sepa- 
ration Act  was  devised  at  Illruin,  by  which  all  his  adhe- 
rents dissolved  connection  with  the  Church.  They  were 
said  to  number  eighty  thousand,  but  it  is  probable  that 
the  estimate  was  an  exaggeration.  By  request  of  the 
Synod,  the  Separatists  were  prosecuted  by  the  govern- 
ment, who  used  as  a  pretext  an  article  in  the  Code  Napo- 
leon, which  forbade  the  assembly  of  more  than  twenty 
persons  for  worship  without  the  consent  of  the  civil 
authorities.  They  were  defended  by  many  lawyers  of 
the  school  of  Bilderdyk.  Foremost  of  the  number  was 
Groen  Van  Prinsterer.  "  the  conscience  of  the  Legislative 
Assembly,  the  right  arm  of  religion  in  the  State,  and 
the  defender  of  the  principle  of  religion  in  the  school." 
They  were  assailed  by  mobs  who  called  them  the  "New 
Lights." 

The  schism  was  not  a  success.  What  promised  to 
be  a  great  and  honorable  Church,  like  the  Free  Church 
of  Scotland,  with  which  it  now  stands  connected,  car- 
ried with  it  much  of  the  prejudice  and  bigotry  of  the 
land.  It  did  not  identify  itself  with  scientific  progress, 
and  paid  little  regard  to  education.  Any  man  of  piety 
and  utterance  could  become  a  preacher  in  one  of  its  pul- 
pits. It  has  at  present  a  Seminary  at  Kampen,  with  a 
small  faculty  of  three  professors.  Its  course  of  study 
will  compare  favorably  with  that  of  any  institution  in 
the  United  States.  The  young  men  of  talent,  who  now 
grow  up  in  its  fold,  are  prejudiced  against  its  ultraism, 
and  stand  ready  at  any  moment  to  unite  with  some  new 
movement  which  will  combine  the  piety  of  their  fathers 
and  the  scientific  demands  of  the  present  day.  Ihe 
radical  defects  of  its  initial  steps  were  narrow-mind- 
edness and  fanaticism.  The  Separatists  utterly  ignored 
the   elements    of    good    in    the    mother-church.     They 


364  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

could  have  done  infinitely  better  service  by  casting  al) 
their  influence  with  Bilderdyk  and  his  followers  in  the 
Church,  instead  of  arraying  themselves  against  it,  and 
becoming  an  enemy  from  without.  Some  of  the  lead- 
ers have  organized  colonies,  which  greatly  weakened 
the  power  and  prestige  of  those  who  remained  at  home. 
The  emigrants  came  to  America  and  settled,  for  the 
most  part,  in  the  Western  States. 

The  Groningen  School.  Each  of  the  two  tenden- 
cies prevalent  in  the  Church  of  Holland  had  its  decided 
defects.  While  one  was  zealous  for  theological  training, 
it  was  nevertheless  cold,  indifferent  and  Rationalistic. 
While  the  other  was  burning  with  religious  fervor  and  a 
practical  evangelism,  it  was  deficient  in  culture,  scientific 
grasp,  and  a  capacity  to  meet  the  wants  of  the  time. 
There  was  a  call  for  a  third  party,  which  would  unite 
the  best  features  of  the  two  others,  and  develop  them 
into  a  new  progressive  power.  Hence  arose  the  Gronin- 
gen  School.  Its  immediate  origin  was  the  attempt  of 
Professor  Van  Heusde  to  modernize  Platonism  and 
adapt  it  to  the  nineteenth  century.  Hofstede  de  Groot, 
Pareau,  and  Muurling  have  been  its  leaders.  Its  organ 
is  the  periodical  entitled,  Truth  in  Love. 

The  characteristic  of  this  school  is,  that  there  is 
in  human  nature  a  divine  element  which  needs  develop- 
ment in  order  to  enable  humanity  to  reach  its  destina- 
tion. This  destination  is  conformity  to  God.  All  re- 
ligions have  aimed  and  worked  at  the  same  problem, 
but  Christianity  has  solved  it  in  the  highest  and  purest 
manner.  Still,  there  is  only  a  difference  in  degree 
between  that  and  other  religions.  This  is  the  germ 
of  what  the  Groningens  call  the  "  Evangelical  Catholic 
Theology."  Conformity  to  God,  they  say,  has  been 
reached  in  Jesus  Christ ;  but  Plato,  Zoroaster,  and  Con 


THE    GEONLNGEN   SCHOOL.  365 

fucius  strove  to  attain  to  it.  They  failed  because 
their  task  was  too  great  for  the  means  at  command. 
God  has  fulfilled  the  desire  of  man,  whom  he  had 
prepared  for  salvation  by  sending  perfection  embodied 
"»n  Christ.  We  may  not  attach  ourselves  to  any  system 
or  effort  as  absolutely  true  or  good,  nor  condemn  any 
as  utterly  false.  All  knowledge  and  arts  are  related 
to  religion.  They  refine  man  and  aid  him  in  his  eman- 
cipation from  whatever  is  sinful  and  sensual. 

The  correspondence  of  ideas  between  Hofstede  de 
Groot  and  Pareau  was  so  intimate  that  they  published 
a  joint  work  on  dogmatic  theology,  which  contains  a 
complete  exposition  of  the  principles  of  the  Groningen 
School.  Jesus  Christ  constitutes  the  centre  of  reli- 
gion. In  him  we  see  what  is  God,  what  is  man,  the 
relations  of  one  to  the  other,  and  how  we  can  be  so  de- 
livered from  sin  and  its  power  as  to  become  God's 
children  by  faith  and  love.  In  Christ's  death  we  find 
love  even  for  sinners,  and  learn  that  suffering  is  not  an 
evil.  In  his  glorification  we  perceive  the  aims  and  re- 
sults of  suffering.  In  him  is  the  Theanthropos,  not 
God  and  man,  but  God  in  man.  There  is  but  one 
nature  in  Christ,  the  divine-human.  Jesus  being  the 
focal  point  of  the  interests  of  man,  we  must  know,  first, 
what  he  is  outside  of  us,  objectively ;  second,  how  he 
appears  within  us,  subjectively.  To  know  Christ  we 
need  the  exegetical  study  of  that  preparation  of  man 
for  Christ,  which  is  furnished  by  the  Old  Testament. 
The  New  Testament  is  the  fulfillment.  The  latter  con- 
tains the  sayings  of  Jesus  and  the  conclusions  of  the 
Apostles.  The  writers  of  the  Scriptures  were  not  infal- 
lible, though  they  did  not  often  err.  Revelation  is  con- 
tinued in  the  history  of  the  church,  which  is  the  third 
principle  of  development.     Augustine  stood  higher  and 


366  HISTORY   OF    RATIONALISM. 

went  further  than  Paul,  Luther  than  Augustine.  If  our 
development  be  partial  and  imperfect  we  must  go  back 
and  begin  anew. 

The  Groningen  School  is  distinguished  for  its  ethical 
system.  How  does  Christ  live  in  us?  This  is  the 
question  it  proposes  to  answer.  There  is  a  distinction 
between  the  nature  of  man,  which  is  divine,  and  his 
condition,  which  is  sinful.  Sin  is  the  point  where  man, 
misusing  his  liberty,  surrenders  himself  to  his  sensuous 
nature,  which  is  not  sinful  in  itself.  God  educates  man 
by  Jesus  Christ  in  three  ways ;  first,  by  revelation  of 
truth ;  second,  by  manifestation  of  love  ;  third,  by  edu- 
cation of  the  church.  The  high  aim  of  the  Church  is 
to  lead  man  to  a  consciousness  of  the  unity  of  his  origin 
and  destiny,  and  to  bring  all  to  a  knowledge  and  love 
of  Christ,  and  of  God  in  Christ.  Christ  was  educated 
before  his  life  on  earth  for  the  work  designed  for  him, 
and  he  established  the  church  by  leaving  his  glory  and 
leading  a  life  full  of  love  and  truth.  His  death  was  the 
highest  manifestation  of  his  love  and  truth,  for  by  it  he 
showed  God  to  man,  and  man  to  himself.  His  resurrec- 
tion makes  our  hope  of  eternal  life  a  certainty. 

In  the  Groningen  system  there  is  no  place  for  the 
doctrine  of  the  Trinity.  The  influence  of  the  sacra- 
ments is  merely  external,  while  Calvinism  and  the 
"  blood-theology,"  are  subjects  of  abhorrence.  It  would 
be  unjust  to  place  the  Groningen s  beside  the  German 
Rationalists,  though  the  influence  of  both  has  been 
similar.  The  former  class,  like  the  latter,  have  one  fatal 
defect ;  they  consider  sin  a  mere  inconvenience.  They 
hold  that  man  needs  a  Teacher  but  not  a  Redeemer, 
since  all  sinners  will  be  eventually  holy  and  happy. 
The  Groningen  tendency,  as  related  to  Dutch  theol- 
ogy, is  similar  to  that   applied  by  Channinu;   to  the 


THE   LEYDEN    SCHOOL.  367 

orthodoxy  of  the  American  church.  Human  nature 
is  declared  worthy  of  our  attention  and  development. 
True  humanity  is  pure  piety.  God  can  "be  found 
everywhere,  even  in  the  heart  of  man.  The  philosophi- 
cal theology  of  Schleiermacher  has  stamped  the  Gron* 
ingen  system  with  its  own  signet.  They  both  proceed 
from  the  same  starting-point, — not  reason,  but  the  heart. 
Theirs  is  the  religion  of  feeling. 

The  Groningens  have  done  important  service  to  the 
Dutch  church.  Their  elevation  of  ethics  to  a  proper 
position  in  theological  instruction  has  been  a  national 
boon,  while  their  unwavering  zeal  for  the  education  of 
the  masses  and  of  children  will  always  remain  a  monu- 
ment to  their  honor.  While  they  were  the  first  to 
establish  Sunday  Schools  in  Holland,  they  have  given  a 
new  impulse  to  missions.  They  defend  religion  against 
skepticism,  and  picture  the  latter  in  all  its  deformity. 

But  the  Groningen  system  has  almost  totally  failed 
of  its  object.  It  did  not  unite  the  zeal  of  the  fathers 
with  the  science  of  the  present  day.  Though  opposed 
to  Eationalism,  it  is  more  negative  than  positive,  and 
is  less  distinguished  for  its  doctrines  than  for  its  ab- 
sence of  them.  It  claims  that  the  Church  neither  pos- 
sesses nor  needs  doctrines.  Therefore,  it  destroys  the 
line  of  demarcation  between  the  various  confessions  and 
that  confessional  Latitudinarianism,  which  is  the  direct 
offspring  of  the  destructive  principles  of  the  Rational- 
isn  and  Liberalism  of  the  eighteenth  century. 

The  School  of  Leyden.  In  no  theological  system 
had  any  satisfaction  been  afforded  to  the  joint  feeling 
of  attachment  to  the  old  confessions  and  of  a  desire  to 
develop  them  in  conformity  with  the  requirements  of  the 
age.  Many  rejected  the  Groningen  school  because  it 
depreciated  the  formularies  of  the  church,  and  did  not 


368  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

know  how  to  value  their  scope  or  to  elaborate  them 
for  immediate  usefulness.  The  Leyden  school  filled 
the  vacancy.  Taking  its  origin  in  a  disposition  to 
establish  a  connection  between  the  faith  of  the  Re 
formers  and  our  own,  its  aim  has  been  to  unite  the  old 
traditions  with  the  new  opinions. 

The  father  and  expounder  of  the  School  of  Leyden 
is  Professor  Scholten,  formerly  of  Franeker,  but  now 
of  Leyden.  He  is  well  known  as  the  author  of  his- 
torico-critical  introductions,  and  of  a  History  of  Phi 
losophy,  but  his  reputation  has  been  acquired  mainly  by 
his  Doctrines  of  the  Reformed  Church,  a  work  of  great 
clearness,  profound  erudition,  and  romantic  interest. 
As  the  reader  peruses  its  fascinating  pages  he  is  bound 
by  a  spell  which  he  cannot  easily  break.  The  remark 
of  Dugald  Stewart,  on  reading  Edwards  On  the  Will, 
occurs  to  him  with  peculiar  appositeness,  "  There  is  a 
fallacy  somewhere,  but  the  devil  only  can  find  it." 

There  is,  according  to  Scholten,  a  distinction  be- 
tween the  principles  and  dogmas  of  a  Church.  The 
former  are  the  norm  and  touch-stone  of  the  latter.  The 
Reformers  were  not  always  logical  in  their  reasonings, 
and  have  left  an  unfinished  task  for  the  present 
day.  Man  arrives  at  a  knowledge  of  the  truth  by 
the  Holy  Scriptures,  but  they  must  not  be  under- 
stood as  containing  the  only  revelation  from  God; 
He  also  reveals  himself  to  the  world  through  the 
hearts  of  all  believers.  The  Bible  is  the  source  of  the 
original  religion.  There  is  a  difference  between  the 
Scriptures  and  the  word  of  God.  The  latter  is  what 
God  reveals  in  the  human  spirit  concerning  his  will 
and  himself.  The  writing  down  of  the  communication 
is  purely  human  ;  therefore,  the  Bible  cannot  be  called 
a   revelation.      We   know,   by   the   testimony   of  the 


scholten's  opinions.  369 

Spirit,  that  God's  word  in  the  Scriptures  is  truth.  But 
Scriptural  authority  must  not  be  accepted, — a  liberty 
which  would  apply  to  a  Jewish  but  not  to  a  Chris- 
tian  age.  Jesus  and  the  apostles  did  not  compel  men 
to  accept  truth  by  a  proclamation  of  authority,  but  by 
an  irresistible  moral  power.  Even  in  times  when  the 
liberty  and  individuality  of  faith  have  been  lost  in  the 
Church,  there  were  men  who  did  not  answer  the  ques- 
tion, "  Why  do  you  believe  %  "  by  saying,  "  Because  the 
Church  has  spoken ; "  but  by  appealing  to  their  interior 
consciousness. 

Historical  criticism  must  be  called  in,  Scholten  fur- 
ther holds,  to  prove  the  certainty  of  the  facts  of  revela- 
tion. But  the  truth  of  the  Christian  religion  cannot  be 
established  on  this  plan.  With  Rousseau,  Lessing,  and 
others,  he  opposes  any  attempt  to  make  the  best  his- 
torical grounds  the  basis  of  a  religious  conviction.  The 
truth  of  Scripture  is  testified  by  human  nature  itself, 
which,  educated  by  Christianity,  recognizes  freely  and 
personally  the  truth  of  the  gospel.  The  natural  faculty 
that  performs  this  high  office  is  reason,  not  feeling 
Scripture  is  the  touchstone  of  the  Christianity  of  a  con- 
viction, but  not  of  its  truth.  The  Reformers  very  proper- 
ly distinguished  between  a  first  and  secondary  authority, 
and  allowed  themselves  complete  liberty  in  their  search 
after  the  origin  of  the  books  of  Scripture.  This  was 
not  a  dangerous  experiment,  for  he  who  has  once  come 
to  know  Christianity  as  the  highest  form  of  religion, 
can  never  fall  into  a  negative  criticism.  If  the  religious 
contents  of  the  Bible  find  their  justification  in  the  in- 
terior consciousness  of  man,  then  the  question  arises, 
"  Can  human  reason  attain  to  the  supersensual,  or  is  it 
limited  to  the  sensuous  experience  %  "  The  organ  of  all 
natural  knowledge  of  God  is  reason  ;  while  its  fountain 


370  HISTOKY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

is  the  physical,  intellectual,  and  moral  world.  The 
first  Adam  did  not  possess  that  knowledge  of  God 
which  was  thoroughly  enjoyed  by  the  second.  But 
can  man  attain  to  the  knowledge  of  God  while  in  a 
sinful  condition,  and  while  the  light  of  his  reason  ia 
darkened  ?  Assuredly  he  may,  for  sin  does  not  belong 
to  the  essence,  but  to  the  condition  of  man.  The  Re- 
formed theologians  built  on  the  acknowledgment  that 
Religion  has  her  seat  in  the  being  of  man,  and  sees  in 
the  Christian  the  expression  of  the  reasonable  religion. 
The  material  principle  of  the  Reformed  church  is  the 
doctrine  of  God's  sovereignty  and  free  grace.  The 
weakness  of  the  Reformation  lay  in  its  inconsistency, 
for  it  substituted  the  authority  of  the  letter  for  that 
of  the  Church. 

Scholten's  abhorrence  of  authority  has  led  him  to  a 
denial  of  miracles.  From  this  point  of  view  he  can 
freely  join  hands  with  the  Rationalists.  In  his  latest 
work,  the  Gospel  of  John,  he  takes  occasion  to  retract 
the  favorable  opinions  formerly  expressed  concerning 
that  portion  of  the  New  Testament.  He  has  been  fear- 
lessly assailed  by  Oosterzee,  La  Saussaye,  Da  Costa, 
and  other  leading  theologians.  Unfortunately,  he  ex- 
erts more  influence  over  the  young  theologians  of  Hol- 
land than  any  other  Dutch  theologian.  He  is  ardently 
supported  by  Knenen,  the  exegete,  his  colleague  at 
Leyden;  and  by  Rauenhoff,  the  ecclesiastical  historian. 
We  close  our  estimate  of  Scholten  with  a  word  on  his 
opinions  of  Christianity  in  general.  It  is  neither  super- 
human nor  supernatural.  It  is  the  highest  point  of  the 
development  of  human  nature  itself,  and,  in  this  sense, 
it  is  natural  and  human  in  the  highest  acceptation  of 
those  terms.     It  is  the  mission  of  science  to  put  man  in 


THE    EMPIRICAL    THEOLOGY.  371 

a  condition  to  comprehend  the  divine  volume  presented 
by  Christianity.1 

The  School  of  Empirical-Modern  Theology.  The 
two  leading  representatives  of  this  important  branch 
of  contemporary  Dutch  theology  are  Opzoomer  and 
Pierson.  The  former,  a  professor  in  the  University  of 
Utrecht,  left  the  sphere  of  theological  instruction  for  a 
time,  and  took  a  prominent  part  in  political  debates  in 
order  to  combat  the  claims  of  the  anti-revolutionary 
party.  He  exerted  little  influence  during  the  first  years 
of  his  professorship  in  Utrecht,  but  since  his  publica- 
tion of  a  manual  of  logic,  The  Road  of  Science,  he  has 
had  a  large  share  in  founding  the  school  with  which  he 
is  now  identified.  In  this  work  he  maintains  that  ob- 
servation is  the  only  means  of  arriving  at  certainty,  and 
that  everything  which  cannot  be  proved  by  experience 
is  uncertain,  and  has  no  right  within  the  domain  of 
science.  This  is  the  central  thought  of  his  whole 
system. 

Pierson  stands  related  to  Opzoomer  as  Mansel  does 
to  Sir  William  Hamilton.  The  son  of  religious  parents, 
he  was  at  first  rigidly  orthodox.  He  is  now  pastor  of 
the  Walloon  Church  at  Rotterdam.  His  early  writings 
were  touchingly  beautiful  and  attractive,  for  it  was  in 
them  that  he  laid  open  his  inner  life.  But  in  his  later 
works  he  assumes  the  air  of  the  censor  and  scoffer.  He 
was  long  the  personal  friend  of  La  Saussaye,  but,  ow- 
ing to  doctrinal  differences,  they  have  parted  and  now 
pursue  different  paths.  He  is  an  orator  of  the  Amer- 
ican type.  His  opinions  are  elaborated  in  his  twc 
works.  The   Origin  of  the  Modem  Tendency,  and  the 

1  An  article  by  Scholten  on  Modern  Materialism  and  its  Causes,  may  be 
found  in  tbe  Progress  of  Religious  Thought  in  the  Protestant  Church  of 
France.    London :  1861,  pp.  10-48. 


372  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Tendency  and  Life.  In  the  latter  treatise  we  learn  not 
merely  the  personal  views  of  Pierson,  but  the  creed 
advocated  by  all  the  adherents  of  the  empirical-modern 
theology. 

The  New  Theology,  he  holds,  has  an  indisputable 
right  to  assume  the  epithet  "  modern,"  in  distinction 
from  "  liberal."  The  latter  term  is  borne  by  the  Gron- 
ingen  pchool,  which  always  opposes  the  church-creed. 
The  principle  of  reform  has  not  been  fully  carried  out  by 
the  Protestants.  The  Protestant  builds  his  faith  on  the 
Bible,  but  on  what  does  he  build  his  faith  in  the  Bible  \ 
Is  it  not  the  testimony  of  the  Holy  Spirit  ?  He  has 
this  support  only  through  the  Bible.  Certain  liberal 
theologians,  like  the  orthodox,  are  extremely  illogical 
in  their  conclusions  concerning  the  word  of  God.  The 
former  will  not  accept  of  verbal  inspiration,  yet  they 
call  the  Bible  a  divine  book,  which,  fortunately,  could 
be  no  better.  Though  they  laugh  at  the  story  of  Jonah 
and  the  whale,  they  accept  every  word  of  Christ,  who 
quotes  the  story.  They  will  not  hear  of  present  mirac- 
ulous interpositions  of  providence,  but  accept  some  of 
the  miracles  of  the  Bible.  There  are  Catholic  priests 
who  are  affability  itself,  while  there  are  orthodox  Prot- 
estants possessed  of  ultra  views.  In  contrast  with  all 
these  classes  stand  the  heroes  of  the  Modern  Tlieology, 
who  possess  the  "  passion  for  reality,"  and  are  endowed 
with  the  new  cosmology  of  Galileo. 

All  true  knowledge,  argues  Pierson,  is  self-knowl- 
edge. Reality  comes  to  us  in  the  impressions  we  re* 
ceive  of  it.  I  see,  I  hear ;  and  whether  there  is  a  reality 
outside  corresponding  to  the  impression,  is  a  question 
nevei  asked  by  a  reasonable  man.  One  who  has  a  fester 
on  a  July  day  complains  of  cold.  The  bystanders  deny 
his  right  to  say  it  is  cold.     Now  do  they  obtain  their 


pierson's  opinions.  873 

right  from  a  comparison  of  their  impressions  with  some- 
thing objective  ?  No.  His  knowledge  is  subjective  in 
this  sense ;  that  it  arises  from  sources  which  are  in  him 
alone,  while  theirs  is  objective,  because  they  compare 
their  impressions.  Error  is  not  in  the  impression  but 
in  the  explanation.  Man  has  more  than  sensual  im 
pressions.  We  have  a  faculty  which  brings  us  into  con- 
tact with  a  spiritual  world.  The  religious  man  is  by 
necessity  an  anthropomorphist.  He  claims  a  personal 
God,  a  Father,  a  Redeemer,  an  Ideal.  We  need  a  sharp 
analysis  to  see  the  reflections  of  the  contents  of  our 
religious  feeling.  Our  mind  seeks  a  conception  of  God, 
the  basis  of  which  must  be  the  idea  of  the  Absolute, 
Infinite  Being.  The  Scriptures  must  be  criticised  by 
our  reason.  The  first  three  gospels,  which  tell  us  what 
Christ  said  and  did,  are  not  authority  for  us.  Their 
writers  are  unknown,  in  the  main,  and  by  no  means 
original.  But  exact  criticism  may  succeed  in  giving  us 
a  portrait  of  the  Prophet  of  Galilee.  He  lived  a  life 
according  to  the  spirit,  and  proclaimed  a  religion  such 
as  no  one  before  or  after  him  has  been  able  to  do.  Is 
it  not  enough  that  he  has  glorified  humanity,  and  made 
himself  adored  as  king  of  humanity,  even  with  a  crown 
of  thorns  upon  his  brow  ?  The  hearts  of  men  have 
been  disclosed  to  him,  and  he  has  caused  to  well  up 
therefrom  streams  of  love,  which  none  can  turn  aside. 
Is  his  name  not  glorious  when  we  think  that  the  peni- 
tence of  a  Magdalene,  and  the  sorrow  of  a  Peter,  are 
flowers  which  have  permanently  sprung  up  from  earth 
only  after  that  earth  had  been  drenched  by  his  blood 
and  tears  ?  But  the  Church  has  made  a  mythological 
character  of  Christ.  It  has  contemned  the  real  Jesus 
who  stood  in  opposition  to  authority  and  tradition.  In 
his  name  the  Church  has  enthroned  and  glorified  this 


374  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

authority.  It  was  not  from  a  system  but  from  a  prin- 
ciple that  lie  expected  the  regeneration  of  man.  We 
have  a  safe  revelation  in  the  world  about  us.  It  is 
God's  work  in  and  around  ourselves.  Explore  it; 
study  yourself  and  man ;  but  do  it  with  such  a  spirit 
and  purpose  as  Christ  possessed. 

Asa  specimen  of  Pierson's  style,  we  give  his  portrait 
of  a  good  preacher :  "  All  elements  are  concentrated 
in  him  in  such  a  way  that  men  will,  can,  and  must  lis- 
ten, for  attention  is  as  much  a  state  as  love.  You  can- 
not command,  but  you  may  deserve  it.  Paint  for  hu- 
manity, which,  though  despised  by  the  formalists, 
terrified  by  the  moralists,  and  condemned  by  the  Phar- 
isees, is  yet  the  image  of  him  who  spoke  not  of  its 
guilt,  but  of  its  sickness  and  sorrow ;  not  of  a  judgment- 
seat,  but  of  the  open  arms  of  the  Father ;  not  of  damna- 
tion, but  of  regeneration.  A  Holland  painter  came  from 
a  foreign  land,  and  painted  a  Dutch  landscape.  But 
everybody  who  saw  it,  said :  c  He  has  been  in  Italy.' 
So  let  it  be  said  of  every  Christian  minister,  '  He  has 
been  in  Galilee,  it  is  the  color  of  Jesus.'  " 

The  opinions  entertained  by  the  defenders  of  the 
Empirical-Modern  Theology  have  few  points  of  sym- 
pathy with  evangelical  Christianity.  They  stand 
above  Rationalism,  but  not  opposed  to  it.  The  system 
attempts  a  purification-process  of  Christian  faith.  It 
does  not  break  with  tradition  and  doctrine,  but  claim 
ing  the  privilege  of  using  its  own  eyes,  it  rejects  the 
authority  of  both.  It  does  not  admit  a  supernatural 
origin  of  the  Scriptures,  but  looks  with  suspicion  upon 
many  of  the  accounts  contained  therein.  Taught  by  the 
philosophy  of  experience  that  everything  has  a  natural 
som-ce,  even  in  the  world  of  mind,  it  finds  no  room  for 
free  will.     It  cherishes  a  high  regard  for  the  individual 


THE    ETHIC  AL-IKENTCAL    SCHOOL.  375 

ity  of  man,  and  esteems  it  wrong  to  let  the  particular 
be  lost  in  the  universal.  It  discards  any  system  of 
morals  which  does  not  do  justice  to  this  individuality. 
Its  ethics  are  deterministic,  but  not  fatalistic.  It  holds 
that  the  mysteries  of  orthodoxy  are  mystifications 
which  insult  the  thinking  man.  It  claims  that  its 
doubts  are  not  sinful,  for  it  says  :  "  I  have  not  doubted 
from  a  wish  to  doubt."  But  it  furnishes  nothing  to 
take  the  place  of  that  which  it  destroys  by  its  negative 
criticism.  This  is  its  fatal  weakness.  With  its  prin- 
ciple, "  no  authority,"  it  attacks  the  Bible,  and  finds  it 
written  neither  by  the  supposed  authors  nor  at  the 
alleged  dates.  It  destroys  the  sanctity  of  that  which 
has  become  hallowed  by  our  inner  experience.  It  takes 
away  Christ,  in  all  his  essential  attributes,  from  the 
believer. 

The  Ethical-Irenical  School.  We  have  thus  far 
seen,  in  the  present  state  of  theology  in  Holland, 
few  indications  of  the  vigorous  progress  of  evangelical 
truth.  But  the  Ethical-Irenical  School,  combining  the 
principal  orthodox  minds,  stands  in  manly  and  pros- 
perous opposition  to  all  parties  which  possess  Ra- 
tionalistic affinities.  Chantepie  de  la  Saussaye  and 
Professor  Van  Oosterzee  are  its  leaders.  These  men 
differ  on  minor  points,  but,  in  general,  they  are  harmoni- 
ous co-workers  against  skepticism  in  every  form.  They 
stand  in  the  front  rank  of  Dutch  theologians,  the  former 
having  no  superior  as  a  thinker,  and  the  latter  none  as 
an  orator. 

La  Saussaye  is  not  a  popular  writer.  His  style  is 
compact  and  his  arguments  intricate.  He  is  some- 
times eloquent,  however,  and  a  close  thinker  takes 
pleasure  in  reading  his  pages.  He  does  not  like 
the  term  "  orthodoxy,"  for   he  thinks    it   too    loud   a 


376  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

profession.  He  has  been  charged  with  Hegelian- 
ism  because  of  some  expressions  in  his  Commentary 
on  the  Hebrews.  But  the  allegation  is  false,  for 
he  only  applauded  Hegel  and  Schelling  as  thinkers, 
without  giving  any  sanction  to  their  opinions.  His 
views  are  as  yet  but  little  known  to  the  people,  only 
a  few  being  willing  to  study  his  weighty  thoughts. 
He  is  thoroughly  imbuing  his  congregation  in  Rotter- 
dam with  his  own  spirit,  and  has  now  many  follow- 
ers, who  are  giving  his  ideas  to  the  public  in  an  attrac- 
tive form.  In  1851  he  had  a  long  and  serious  illness, 
after  which  he  deemed  it  his  duty  to  limit  himself 
no  longer  to  the  functions  of  the  pastoral  office,  but  to 
raise  his  voice  in  ecclesiastical  debates.  In  1852  he 
took  part  in  the  formation  of  a  society  called  "Seriousness 
and  Peace "  and  was  associated  with  Beets  and  Doedes 
in  the  editorship  of  their  organ  bearing  the  same  name. 
The  principle  of  the  new  organization  consisted  in  the 
prominence  given  to  science  and  its  service  in  theology, 
in  opposition  to  the  school  of  Bilderdyk.  It  held  that 
the  Scriptures  are  of  divine  authority ;  that  they  are 
properly  expressed  in  the  confessions  of  the  Reformed 
church  of  Holland ;  and  that  science  must  be  subsi- 
dized for  their  explanation.1 

Soon  after  the  appearance  of  Re  nan's  Life  of  'Jesus, 
the  Dutch  theologians  were  surprised  by  a  pamphlet 
entitled  History  or  Romance,  which,  besides  giving 
an  admirable  criticism  on  the  new  work,  denned  very 
clearly  the  points  at  issue,  and  lifted  out  of  its  poetic 
frame  the  picture  deserving  more  serious  study.  .  The 
style  was  recognized  as  that  of  Professor  Van  Oosterzee. 
Like  everything  coming  from  his  pen,  it  was  easily  read 
and   as   easily    digested.     It    sounded    the    alarm,  and 

1  La  Crise  Rdigieuse  en,  Hollande,  pp.  12-107. 


PROFESSOR    VAN  OOSTERZEE.  377 

warned  the  public  mind  against  accepting  Renan's  ro- 
mance as  history.  A  few  sentences  in  Professor  Van 
Oosterzee's  little  work  reveal  his  position  in  the  present 
conflict  with  Rationalism.  "  Modern  Naturalism,''  says 
he,  "  can  be  conquered  only  by  a  Christian  philosophic 
belief   in  revelation,  and  by  a  powerful    development 

of   modern  supernaturalism To  some, 

nothing  is  easier  than  to  lay  all  supernaturalism  under 
condemnation,  especially  when  it  is  opposed  only  in  that 
form  in  which  it  appeared  against  the  worn-out  Rational- 
ism of  the  past  century,  without  attending  to  its  further 
development,  or  taking  the  trouble  to  add  to  Renan's 
critical  anathema  a  clear  and  intelligible  exposition  of 
his  own  point  of  view.  Renan's  Life  of  Jesus  shows  us 
what  becomes  of  Christianity  when  we  regard  only  the 
ethical-religious  side  of  revelation,  and  not  its  supernat- 
ural character.  You  can  hope  for  no  victory  as  long  as 
you  know  none  but  a  subjective  ground  of  faith,  and  do 
not  meet  Satan,  coming  as  an  angel  of  light,  with  a  per- 
spicuous and  powerful,  '  Thus  it  is  Written.'  " 

Professor  Van  Oosterzee  was  called  four  years  ago 
to  the  chair  of  Scriptural  Interpretation  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Utrecht,  now  the  centre  of  evangelical  theology 
in  Holland.  He  had  been  pastor  of  a  church  in  Rot- 
terdam, and  his  new  appointment,  made  at  the  instance 
of  the  King  and  his  ministers,  was  a  great  triumph  of 
the  orthodox  party.  He  had  already  distinguished  him- 
self by  his  Life  of  Christ  and  Ohristology,  in  six  vol- 
umes, and  by  his  exegetical  labors  in  connection  with 
Lange's  Bible-  Work.  But  the  oration  he  delivered  on 
his  assumption  of  office  in  the  University  added  largely 
to  his  reputation,  and  obliterated  any  doubt  which  may 
have  existed  concerning  his  firm  attachment  to  the  faith 
of  the  fathers.     Bearing  the  title,  The  Skepticism  tvhich 


378  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

is  anxiously  to  be  avoided  by  the  Theologians  of  our  Day,1 
it  discusses  the  character,  origin,  rights,  fruits,  and  rem- 
edy of  the  infidelity  of  the  present  time.  The  cardinal 
characteristic  of  this  skepticism  is,  according  to  Professor 
Van  Oosterzee,  a  denial  of  the  great  revelation  of  grace 
and  truth  in  Jesus  Christ,  as  the  Son  of  God  and  of 
man,  by  whom  salvation  is  made  possible  to  us  and 
to  all  the  world.  There  are  three  fountains  of  the 
modern  infidelity;  a  scholastic  dogmatism,  which  has 
laid  more  stress  on  the  formularies  of  the  church  than 
on  the  Gospel  itself;  a  wild,  revolutionary  spirit  in 
politics,  not  of  native  growth,  but  imported  from  abroad, 
which  only  satisfied  itself  by  the  overthrow  of  thrones, 
by  the  transgression  of  all  established  limits,  and  by  its 
declaration  of  the  supreme  rights  of  reason  and  will ; 
and  a  false  philosophy,  with  its  unholy  brood  of  Empiri- 
cism, Idealism,  Materialism,  Rationalism,  and  Natural- 
ism. The  skepticism  of  the  present  day  asserts  rights 
to  which  it  has  no  claim  whatever,  for  it  holds  that 
the  so-called  mysteries  of  Christianity  have  no  divine 
basis,  and  that  there  can  be  nothing  supernatural  in  rev- 
elation. Neither  can  the  labors  of  the  skeptics  pro- 
duce substantial  and  permanent  good  in  any  department 
of  theology.  The  only  way  to  combat  them  is  not  by  re- 
viewing the  opinions  of  departed  thinkers  and  teachers, 
so  much  as  by  going  directly  back  to  the  Bible  itself,  and 
looking  at  it  with  the  aid  of  every  new  step  in  science. 
Such  a  weapon  is  a  sound  system.  It  may  be  termed 
the  Evangelical- Biblical,  historical-philosophical,  Ireni- 
cal-practical  theology.  If  it  be  developed,  all  the  shafts 
of  infidelity  will  fall  harmless  at  its  feet. 

Immediately  after  the  appearance  of  Professor  Van 

1  Oratio  de  Scepticismo,  Rodiernis  Theologis  Caute  Vitando,  quara  habuit 
Johannes  Jacobus  Van  Oosterzee  Theologis  Doctor  :  Koterodami.     1863. 


CHANTEPIE   DE    LA    SAUSSAYE.  379 

Dosterzee's  reply  to  Renan,  La  Saussaye  published  his 
work  entitled,  How  must  Modern  Naturalism  be  at- 
tacked ?  While  he  opposes  Naturalism,  he  also  takes  ex- 
ception to  the  usual  orthodox  method  of  assailing  it. 
In  this  work,  together  with  other  treatises  by  the  same 
vigorous  writer,  we  find  the  Ethical-Ire nical  theology 
stated  and  defended. 

The  term  Ethical  is  not,  according  to  La  Saussaye, 
the  same  as  moral, — for  morality,  conscience,  duty,  and 
virtue  are  terms  which  find  their  home  in  the  Kantian 
philosophy,  and  are  now  appropriated  by  the  Groning- 
en  School.  Ethical  has  application  to  the  receptivi- 
ties,— the  inner  wants,  and  states  of  the  heart.  It  dif- 
fers from  religion  just  as  want  differs  from  supply. 
The  Christian  knows  that  religious  truth,  life,  and  action, 
are  not  the  fruits  of  his  subjective  state  of  feeliug,  but  of 
revelation,  and  of  the  communication  of  God  to  his  spirit. 
The  ethical  is  the  natural,  and  the  religious  is  the  su- 
pernatural state  of  the  heart.  The  Ethical  theologians 
differ  from  the  Supernaturalists  on  the  following  psy- 
chological ground :  the  former  believe  that  the  super- 
natural is  communicated  with  human  nature,  and  is  so 
inseparable  from  it  that  a  denial  of  it  is  a  rejection  of 
all  that  is  most  human  in  man.  The  latter  hold  that  the 
supernatural,  since  it  is  an  essential  part  of  religion,  is 
not  necessary  merely  to  accredit  revelation,  but  to  es- 
tablish it. 

While  La  Saussaye  agrees  with  Van  Oosterzee  in  ap. 
plication  of  the  term  ethical,  he  does  not  hold  with  him 
that  the  "  Thus  it  is  written  "  is  an  adequate  reply  to 
the  Rationalist.  Neither  will  his  view  of  miracles  har- 
monize with  that  of  the  professor,  or  with  Vinet  and 
De  Pressense,  of  whom  he  forcibly  reminds  us  in  many 
of  his  opinions.     The  supernaturalistic  theory,  La  Saus- 

26 


380  HISTORY    OF    KATIONALISM. 

Baye  contends,  is  incorrect.  The  Church  has  paid  too 
much  attention  to  the  exterior  features  of  miracles,  but 
far  too  little  to  their  ethical  import,  and  to  the  connection 
between  nature  and  spirit.  Miracles  can  be  defended 
only  on  the  ground  that  the  power  to  work  them  is  still 
in  the  church  over  which  Christ  presides  and  to  which 
he  communicates  his  energy.  The  Naturalist  who  op- 
poses the  present  power  of  miracles  can  be  convicted  by 
an  appeal  to  his  own  personality  ;  for  he  is  not  merely 
nature,  but  also  supernatural,  free,  spiritual.  He  feels 
himself  responsible ;  he  has  a  conscience.  Renan,  in 
his  picture  of  Christ  and  his  apostles,  places  salvation 
on  an  equality  with  deliverance  from  sickness,  and 
makes  it  mere  socialism.  If  we  would  rebuke  the  skep- 
ticism of  the  present  day  we  must  return  to  first  princi- 
ples ;  not  to  the  doctrines,  but  to  the  facts  on  which 
they  rest.  Revelation  presupposes  the  ideas  of  God, 
law,  responsibility,  sin  and  judgment.  We  must  recog- 
nize Israel's  law,  though  national  in  form,  as  written 
on  the  hearts  of  all  men.  When  you  prove  the  ethical 
idea  in  religion  you  show  at  once  its  necessary  factor. 
The  life  of  the  Church  is  a  spiritual,  supernatural,  and 
therefore  wonderful  life.  It  is  the  great  standing  mir- 
acle which  proves  the  truth  of  God.  The  first  and  all-im- 
portant thing  to  be  done  by  us  is  not  to  fight  the  natural- 
ism outside  of  us,  but  that  which  is  in  us.  Above  all, 
let  the  church  feel  and  show  the  power  of  the  resurrec- 
tion. The  true  method  of  gaining  "  the  world  "  is  by  the 
awakening  of  the  Church  to  a  consciousness  of  those  ele* 
ments  of  truth  in  her  possession.  The  enemy  we  fight 
is  not  men  but  a  spirit, — the  spirit  of  negation,  destruc- 
tion, and  Satan.  Let  us  believe  in  that  Saviour  who 
makes  the  soul  at  peace  with  God,  reconciles  man  to  the 
Infinite,  and  leads  and  encourages  us  to  attempt  to  ap- 
propriate by  our  thoughts  the  undeveloped  in  our  souls 


FUTURE    OF   THE    CHURCH.  381 

On  what  then  depends  the  future  of  the  Church? 
We  hear  La  Saussaye  describe  in  eloquent  words  the 
conditions  of  her  success:  "I  do  not  hesitate  to  declare," 
he  says,  "  that  the  future  of  a  nation  depends  on  a  revi- 
val, in  the  very  bosom  of  the  Protestant  Church,  of  a 
profound  and  enlightened  piety,  of  an  alliance  of  faith 
with  science,  an  alliance  which  constituted  the  strength 
of  our  illustrious  wise  men,  and  to  which  we  ought  to 
devote  whatever  greatness  there  is  yet  left  us.  It  is 
only  by  the  payment  of  this  price  that  the  Netherland 
Church  can  reconquer  that  place  which  she  once  occupied 
among  Christian  people.  But  since  she  does  not  fill 
this  position,  since  we  are  afraid  of  majestic  science,  and 
only  employ  our  resources  to  treat  of  questions  in  de- 
tail, since  the  stream  of  our  piety  runs  through  a  nar- 
row channel,  and  since  science  only  moves  in  the  direc- 
tion of  a  foolish  liberalism,  European  Protestantism  must 
suffer  from  the  unhappy  vacancy  that  is  now  left  in  the 
ranks  of  the  Church  of  the  Netherlands."1 

The  Church  of  Hollaud  is  now  passing  through  the 
most  important  crisis  in  its  history  since  the  Arminian 
controversy.  The  orthodox  party  is  vigorous,  and  many 
strong  men  are  attaching  themselves  to  it.  But  their 
foes  are  vigilant  and  bold,  and  the  result  cannot  yet  be 
seen.  The  crisis  is  a  necessity  created  by  the  evil  ele- 
ments of  the  eighteenth  century.  When  the  mineral  was 
in  a  state  of  fusion  in  the  bowels  of  the  earth,  it  became 
mixed  with  foreign  and  gross  elements.  But  we  cannot 
now  disengage  the  impure  accessory  by  breaking  the 
mass  with  a  hammer.  If  it  be  put  into  the  crucible  just 
as  it  is,  the  elements  will  separate  of  themselves.  The 
theology  of  Holland,  like  that  of  every  other  Protestant 
country,  is  now  in  the  crucible.     The  heat  is  intense, 

1  La  Crise  Religieme  en  Sollande,  p.  200. 


382  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

but  the  intensity  guarantees  the  destruction  of  the 
dross  which  has  gathered  about  the  truth.  There  are 
many  good  men  in  the  Church  who  cannot  see  the  con- 
nection and  bearing  of  the  gigantic  efforts  now  making 
for  the  overthrow  of  faith  in  Holland.  Looking  upon 
them  as  abnormal,  they  become  discouraged.  Therefore 
they  have  cherished  a  warm  attachment  to  the  doctrine 
of  the  speedy  coming  of  Christ.  It  is  now  a  more  com- 
mon expression  than  ever  before  in  that  country,  "  Christ 
cometh  ! " 

Next  to  the  philosophical  and  religious  causes  of  the 
present  momentous  crisis,  stands  the  absence  of  popu- 
lar thought  and  of  Christian  work.  There  had  been 
a  reliance  on  the  symbols  without  proper  meditation 
upon  them,  or  a  disposition  to  trace  them  back  to 
their  Biblical  fountain.  Men  believed  what  their 
fathers  had  told  them,  or,  as  the  French  say,  "  Parceque 
tout  le  monde  le  disaW  The  teachers  of  the  young 
thought  in  the  old  routine.  But  the  Rationalistic 
theologians  are  driving  every  Mend  of  the  Church 
and  every  firm  believer  in  Scripture  to  reason  for  him 
self,  with  the  Bible  for  his  basis ;  and  in  no  country  is 
religion  more  rapidly  christianizing  science  than  in  Hol- 
land. Young  theologians  preach  more  earnestly  than 
their  predecessors  had  done  for  a  century.  La  Saus- 
saye  is  an  illustration  of  how  an  individual  is  influ- 
encing the  tendency  of  the  theological  mind.  He  has 
never  published  a  complete  system,  though  his  friends 
are  anxiously  awaiting  the  appearance  of  his  Psychol- 
ogy. It  is  the  man  himself  who  has  done  so  much 
for  emancipating  the  individual,  and  placing  him  upon 
the   immovable  truth  of  the  Bible. 

Very  recently  the  Church  of  Holland  has  applied  her- 
self to  earnest,  practical  work.     Her  evangelizing  efforts 


DUTCH    MISSIONS.  383 

will  now  compare  favorably  with  those  of  French  Prot- 
estantism. In  no  country  have  the  congregations  been 
more  attached  to  the  clergy  than  in  Holland.  But  the 
intimacy  has  diminished  the  development  of  individual 
labor  and  responsibility.  Everything  was  left  to  the 
pastor.  Religion  consisted  in  being  preached  to  and 
edified.  Prayer  meetings,  and  humanitarian  and  evan- 
gelizing associations  were  unknown.  But,  of  late,  many 
Sunday  Schools  have  been  organized  ;  religious  societies 
have  been  established ;  and  missions  have  attracted 
profound  attention. 

The  first  missionary  society  ever  formed  in  Holland 
was  the  Moravian  Mission  to  Zeist,  in  1732.  Sixty-five 
years  elapsed  before  a  second  one  came  into  being. 
Not  one  was  instituted  from  1797  to  1851.  Since  that 
date  twelve  foreign  missionary  organizations  have  been 
established,  and  the  religious  people  of  the  country  are 
devoting  a  large  portion  of  their  means  and  labor  to 
their  prosecution.  So  great  is  the  popular  interest  in 
missions  that  an  Evangelical  National  Missionary  Fes- 
tival, held  in  the  open  air  in  July,  1864,  attracted  many 
from  the  surrounding  country  to  take  part  in  the  exer- 
cises. It  was  a  Christian  Feast  of  Tabernacles.  The 
assembly  met  in  a  large  pine  wood.  Carriages,  horses, 
and  the  rude  vehicles  of  the  peasantry  lined  all  the  roads 
leading  thither.  The  singing  of  the  old  Dutch  Psalms 
could  be  heard  at  a  great  distance.  The  assembly,  num- 
bering from  ten  to  twelve  thousand,  gathered  around 
the  pulpits  erected  in  various  places,  where  returned 
missionaries  and  celebrated  preachers  from  different 
cities  were  speaking  on  topics  adapted  to  the  occa- 
sion. The  scene  was  deeply  solemn,  and  highly  calcu- 
lated to  awaken  and  quicken  the  conscience  of  every 
hearer. 


384  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Two   Home    Missions   are   contributing   important 
service  to  the  religious  and  physical  improvement  of  the 
poor  and  neglected.     One  is  the  Society  for  National 
Christian  Education,  founded  five  years  ago,  and  now 
under  the  presidency  of  that  tireless  Christian  states- 
man, Groen  van  Prinsterer.     Its  centre  is  :he  Hague, 
but  it  has  agents  scattered  throughout  the  country  to 
seek  out  any  locality  that  may  need  a  school.     It  has 
normal  schools  in  Kotterdam,  Utrecht,  Groningen,  and 
Nymegen.     It  is  educating  many  thousands  of  children 
who  would  otherwise  go  through  life  without  any  reli- 
gious instruction.     The  other  Home  Mission,  the  So- 
ciety for  the  Propagation  of  Christian  Truth  in  Am- 
sterdam, is  more  local  in  its  character.     Though  very 
young,  it  has  founded  sixteen  Sunday  Schools,  attended 
by   two   thousand   children ;    a   Christian   lodging   or 
boarding-house   at  the   cheapest  rate  for  homeless  fe- 
males; a  room  where  the  members  of  the  society  can  reg- 
ularly meet  to  attend  Bible  lectures,  or  to  hear  reports 
about  home  or  foreign  missions ;  an  infant  school ;    a 
drawing-school   for   boys ;    and   knitting   and   sewing- 
schools   for   girls.     A  large   popular   religious  library 
has  been  formed,  which  is  constantly  increased  by  the 
current  useful  literature.     All  of  these  institutions  are 
under  careful  Christian  direction.1 

The  leaven  of  Christian  faith  is  at  work.  The 
masses  are  beginning  to  feel  its  permeating  and  purify- 
ing power.  La  Saussaye  has  despondingly  said  that 
"  what  the  church  of  Holland  is  now  wanting  is  faith 
in  itself,  in  the  genius  which  has  distinguished  it,  in 
the  mission  which  is  confided  to  it, — faith  in  its  future." 
She  must  have  faith  in  God  before  she  can  have  faith 
in  herself.     The  one  leads  to  the  other.     God's  strength 

1  Christian  Work,  Sept.  1863,  and  July  and  August,  1864. 


RELIANCE    ON    GOD.  385 

w  never  perfected  except  in  weakness.  It  is  from  with- 
out that  we  receive  new  power.  The  disciples  who 
met  in  the  upper  room  of  the  temple  were  visited  by 
an  energy  to  which  they  had  been  total  strangers.  The 
Spirit  came  not  from  their  own  hearts,  but  descended 
from  heaven.  Yet  their  hearts  were  immediately  illu- 
minated, and  they  felt  the  force  of  the  promise,  "  Ye  shall 
receive  power  after  that  the  Holy  Ghost  is  come  upon 
you."  Keal  strength  is  not  self-development  alone,  but 
reliance  on  that  Love  and  Power  which,  now,  as  long 
ago,  can  save  the  burning  bush  from  destruction 


CHAPTER    XVI. 

PRANCE:     RATIONALISM    IN    THE    PROTESTANT   CHURCH  - 
THE  CRITICAL  SCHOOL  OF  THEOLOGY. 

Some  French  clergymen,  who  were  sojourning  in 
Berlin  in  1842,  asked  Neander,  "What  ought  to  be  done 
to  arouse  the  Protestants  of  France  to  thinking  upon 
theological  subjects?"  "  Give  yourselves  no  trouble  on 
that  score,"  replied  the  professor ;  "  Theology  will  yet 
have  its  good  day  among  you.  You  have  in  France 
the  soil  in  which  true  theology  loves  to  germinate  and 
grow — I  mean  Christian  life.  This  has  brought  you 
your  great  theologians  of  the  sixteenth  and  seventeenth 
centuries,  and  it  is  sure  to  do  the  same  thing  in  the 
nineteenth."  The  present  century  has  not  yet  run 
two-thirds  of  its  course,  and  yet  the  prophecy  has  been 
literally  fulfilled. 

The  spectacle  presented  to-day  in  France  is  highly  in- 
teresting. The  period  of  indifference  has  already  termi- 
nated. The  first  step  toward  new  vitality  has  therefore 
been  taken.  French  theology  is  displaying  an  anima- 
tion and  seriousness  which  may  well  excite  the  notice  of 
the  whole  civilized  world.  The  great  minds  are  bestow- 
ing upon  sacred  subjects  an  attention  nowhere  surpassed 
in  vigor  and  acuteness.  Important  religious  questions 
are  taking  their  place  beside  political  themes,  and  the 
circle  of  theological  readers  and  thinkers  is  constantly 


EFFECTS    OF   THE   HUGUENOT    PERSECUTION.  387 

enlarging.  Each  class  is  deeply  engaged  in  the  discus- 
sion of  all  the  new  phases  of  opinion.  Every  man 
chooses  his  party,  cherishes  his  own  convictions,  and 
preaches  them  boldly.  The  traveler  who  may  make 
only  a  brief  stay  in  Paris  will  find  the  representatives 
of  all  the  professions  spending  the  whole  evening  in 
the  criticism  of  the  last  books  from  the  Liberal  Party, 
and  of  the  rejoinders  of  their  orthodox  opponents. 
Now,  for  the  first  time  since  the  seventeenth  century, 
a  state  of  general  religious  inquiry  and  earnestness 
exists.  It  is  not  difficult  to  interpret  this  quickening 
of  national  thought  on  theological  questions.  It  means 
that  France  will  have  no  small  share  in  the  decision  of 
the  great  points  at  issue  between  evangelical  believers 
and  their  critical,  destructive  antagonists. 

A  half  century  ago  the  Reformed  and  Lutheran 
churches  were  sunk  in  skeptical  formalism.  They  were 
divided  into  two  parties,  neither  of  which  possessed 
spirit  enough  to  defend  its  position,  or  grace  enough  to 
ask  God  for  his  blessing.  One  adhered  to  the  cold 
Supernaturalism  of  the  eighteenth  century,  the  other  to 
a  system  of  philosophical  Deism.  The  reduced  state 
of  piety  was  largely  due  to  the  oppression  suffered  at 
the  hand  of  the  state.  The  Revocation  of  the  Edict  of 
Nantes,  which  deprived  Protestants  of  both  religious 
and  civil  liberty,  occurred  in  October,  1685,  and  it  was 
not  until  1808  that  the  law  of  the  18th  Germinal  once 
more  recognized  their  rights,  and  placed  Catholicism 
and  Protestantism  on  an  equal  basis.  The  whole  in- 
terval was  marked  by  a  stagnation  of  fearful  character. 
At  tbe  time  of  the  Revocation,  the  Reformed  church 
had  eight  hundred  edifices  and  six  hundred  and  forty 
pastors,  but  when  the  restoration  occurred  it  had  but 
one  hundred  and  ninety  churches  and  the  same  number 
of  pastors. 


388  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

The  apostasy  of  the  Protestants  went  to  a  fearful 
extent.  For  example,  at  the  very  time  of  the  infamous 
worship  of  the  Goddess  of  Reason,  a  pastor  and  his 
elders  carried  their  communion  plate  and  the  baptismal 
vessels  to  the  mayor,  to  have  them  melted  down  for  the 
nation.  Improvement  began  about  1820.  There  were 
but  three  Protestant  chapels  in  Paris,  and  the  services 
were  dull  and  unattractive.  To  the  late  Frederic 
Monod  belongs  the  imperishable  honor  of  commencing 
the  renovation  by  means  of  his  little  Sunday  school. 
"  Never  will  the  traces  of  his  labors  be  effaced,"  says 
M.  de  Pressense,  "  for  he  it  is  to  whom  we  owe  the  first 
furrows  in  the  vast  field  which  now  we  rejoice  to  see 
white  unto  the  harvest."  A  domestic  evangelical  spirit, 
embracing  the  most  distant  provinces,  began  to  be  ap« 
parent  in  the  ministrations  of  the  clergy  and  in  the 
popular  attendance  at  the  services. 

A  foreign  agency  also  contributed  to  the  awakening. 
In  1785  a  Wesleyan  mission  was  commenced  in  the 
Norman  isle  of  Guernsey,  and  in  the  following  year 
Adam  Clarke  was  sent  to  Jersey.  It  was  designed  to 
make  the  Channel  Islands  the  beginning  of  French  mis- 
sions. Wesley  predicted  that  they  would  be  outposts 
for  evangelizing  efforts  all  over  the  Continent.  In  a 
short  time  Jean  de  Quetteville  and  John  Angel  went 
over  into  Normandy,  and  preached  the  gospel  in  many 
villages.  Dr.  Coke,  the  superintendent  of  the  Meth- 
odist missions,  went  with  the  former  preacher  to  Paris, 
where  they  organized  a  short-lived  mission.  But  the 
labors  of  Mahy,  who  had  been  ordained  by  Coke,  were 
very  successful.  Large  numbers  came  to  his  ministry, 
and  many  were  converted  through  his  instrumentality. 
When  peace  was  declared  after  the  battle  of  Waterloo, 
three  men,  Toase,  Robarts,  and  Frankland,  sailed   for 


RELIGIOUS    INTEREST.  389 

Normandy.  In  1817  Charles  Cook  joined  them.  He 
went  from  town  to  town,  stirring  up  the  sluggish  con- 
science of  French  Protestantism.  He  terminated  his 
arduous  toils  in  1858,  leaving  behind  him  a  French 
branch  of  the  Methodist  church,  which  embraces  one 
hundred  and  fifty-two  houses  of  worship,  one  hundred 
ministers,  lay  and  clerical,  and  fifteen  hundred  members. 
Merle  d'Aubigne  has  said  of  Dr.  Cook  that  "  the  work 
which  John  Wesley  did  in  Great  Britain  Charles  Cook 
has  done,  though  on  a  smaller  scale,  on  the  Continent." 
His  death  was  lamented  by  all  the  leaders  of  French 
Protestantism.  Professor  G.  De  Felice,  of  Montauban, 
has  affirmed  that,  of  the  instruments  of  the  French 
awakening,  "  Dr.  Charles  Cook  was  not  the  least  in- 
fluential." x 

The  new  religious  interest  arising  from  the  native 
and  imported  influences  was  so  fatal  to  the  prevalent 
skepticism  that  Voltaire  and  his  school  have  now  but 
few  adherents.  Skeptics  of  France  consider  that  type 
effete,  and  unworthy  of  their  support.  "  The  present 
disciples  of  Voltaire,"  says  Pastor  Fisch,  "  are  compelled 
to  deny  his  language  if  they  would  remain  true  to  the 
spirit  of  their  master.  For,  to  deride  Jesus  Christ  would 
manifest  an  inexcusable  want  of  respectability." 

But  infidelity  has  only  changed  its  position.  Des 
Cartes,  the  apostle  of  Rationalism  in  France,  had  taught 
that  God  was  only  a  God-Idea,  or  human  thought  con- 
tinuing itself  in  divine  thought  and  in  infinity.  He 
would  make  no  greater  admission  than  that  God  had 
put  the  world  in  motion.  The  princir  les  of  Des  Cartes, 
clustering  around  this  opinion,  have  never  lost  their 
hold  upon  the  French  mind,  and  are  now  influencing  it 
to  a  remarkable  degree. 

1  Stevens,  History  of  Methodism,  Vol.  2,  pp.  331-339. 


390  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Cartesianisin  gained  new  power  by  the  agency  of 
the  Eclectic  School,  whose  champions  were  Roy er- Col- 
lard,  Maine  de  Biran,  Cousin,  and  Jouflroy.  Their 
great  achievement  was  the  unification  of  the  philosophi- 
cal  sy  terns  of  Germany  and  Scotland.  But  the  Eclectics 
are  now  in  a  state  of  dissolution. 

Positivism,  as  a  subordinate  system,  is  the  work  of 
Comte  alone.  This,  too,  is  every  year  losing  its  hold 
upon  the  land  of  its  birth.  Its  fundamental  principle 
is,  that  in  virtue  of  an  inner  law  of  development  of  the 
mind,  the  whole  human  race  will  gradually  emancipate 
itself  from  all  religion  and  metaphysics,  and  substitute 
for  the  worship  of  God  that  of  love  of  humanity,  or  a 
mundane  religion.  The  law  of  development  consists  in 
the  psychological  experience  that  all  the  ideas  and  cog- 
nitions of  the  human  mind  have  necessarily  to  pass 
through  the  three  stages  of  theology,  metaphysics,  and 
positivism.  It  is  only  when  it  arrives  at  the  stand- 
point of  absolutely  positive,  or  mathematically  exact 
knowledge,  that  human  thought  attains  its  goal  of  per- 
fection. The  religion  of  mankind  is  divided  into  three 
stages ;  fetichism,  polytheism,  and  monotheism.  Its  rep- 
resentatives are  Judaism,  Mohammedanism,  and  Chris- 
tianity. Catholicism  is  better  suited  than  any  other 
form  of  religion  to  the  perfect  development  of  human 
society.  The  Christian  world  is  now  in  the  transitory 
stage  of  metaphysics,  which,  by  and  by,  will  lead  to  the 
golden  age  of  Positivism.  This  is  the  absolute  religion, 
or  the  worship  of  humanity,  which  needs  no  God  or 
revelation. 

While  Comte  has  so  deeply  impressed  the  think- 
ing circles  of  France  that  his  opinions  are  still  percep- 
tible in  the  doctrines  of  the  Liberal  Party,  another 
great  agent  has  been  operating  upon  the  young,  unedu- 


LIGHT    FRENCH   LITERATURE.  391 

cated,  and  laboring  classes.  We  refer  to  the  light 
French  novel,  ovfeuilleton  literature.  Such  writers  as 
Sue,  George  Sand,  and  Dumas,  father  and  son,  have 
published  many  volumes  which  were  Issued  in  cheap 
style,  and  afterward  scattered  profusely  over  the  land. 
These  works  have  been  extensively  read,  not  only  in 
France,  but  in  all  parts  of  the  Continent,  Great  Britain, 
and  the  United  States.  A  recent  traveler  has  averred 
that  he  found  many  persons  perusing  them  in  the  read- 
ing-rooms  of  Athens.  But  the  public  mind  sometimes 
needs  a  path  by  which  it  can  effect  a  transition  from  a 
skeptical  to  an  evangelical  condition.  May  it  not  be 
that,  as  far  as  France  is  concerned,  the  minds  of  the 
masses  have,  by  this  agency,  been  deflected  to  such  an 
extent  from  the  infidelity  of  Encyclopsedism  that  pop- 
ular evangelical  literature  will  now  find  a  readier  en- 
trance than  it  could  otherwise  have  effected  ?  If  a 
taste  for  reading  be  once  created,  it  may  be  won,  under 
judicious  management  and  by  the  aid  of  God's  Spirit,  to 
a  purer  cause  than  that  which  first  excited  it.  The 
tendency  of  the  works  in  question  is  indisputably 
pernicious,  but,  if  we  may  think  they  will  serve  as  a 
medium  of  passage  for  the  French  masses  to  the  read- 
ing and  adoption  of  the  great  truths  of  the  Gospel,  let 
us  not  be  too  slow  to  accept  the  consolation. 

Such  are  some  of  the  agencies  which  have  been  op- 
erating upon  the  French  mind.  It  now  becomes  neces- 
sary to  take  a  survey  of  the  present  theological  move- 
ments, and  to  show  in  what  relations  the  Rationalistic 
and  evangelical  thinkers  stand  to  each  other. 

The  Critical  School  of  Theology  is  beyond  all  compar- 
ison the  greatest  foe  of  orthodoxy  in  France.  The  Eng- 
lish nationalists  exhibit  but  little  scholarly  depth,  having 
borrowed  their  principal  thoughts  from  Germany.     The 


392  history  of  rationalism. 

Dutch  are  too  speculative  to  be  successful  at  present, 
and  the  Germans  have  already  grown  weary  of  their 
long  warfare.  But  the  French  School,  claiming  3ucb 
writers  as  Scherer,  Colaui,  Pecaut,  Re>ille,  Keuss,  Co 
querel,  aud  Renan,  is  not  to  "be  disregarded,  nor  are  its 
arguments  to  be  met  with  indifference.  It  is,  however, 
most  gratifying  to  state  that  those  ardent  friends  of  the 
Gospel  who  resist  the  attacks  of  this  school  manifest  a 
zeal,  learning,  and  skill,  quite  equal  to  their  ill-armed  op- 
ponents. 

By  virtue  of  that  principle  of  centralization  which  has 
long  been  in  force  in  France,  the  Critical  School  of  Theol- 
ogy makes  Paris  the  chief  seat  of  its  influence.  Availing 
itself  of  the  advantage  of  the  press,  it  now  publishes 
an  organ  adapted  to  every  class  of  readers.1  The  mem 
bers  of  the  Critical  School  are  connected  with  the  Prot- 
estant Church,  yet  they  claim  to  teach  whatever  views 
they  may  see  proper  to  entertain.  They  profess  deep 
attachment  to  the  Church,  and  in  their  journals  advise 
every  one  to  unite  himself  with  the  fold  of  Christ.  If 
the  Reformed  Church,  in  which  the  most  of  the  Ration- 
alists are  found,  were  not  bound  to  the  State  by  the 
Concordat  and  Budget  it  is  probable  that  it  would  be 
divided.  One  branch  would  be  the  Reformed  Church 
of  France,  founded  in  1559,  with  a  clearly  determined 
creed,  which  none  but  a  General  Synod  would  have 
power  to  modify.  The  other  would  be  the  Church  of 
the  Future,  which  would  proclaim  the  admission  of  no 
dogmas,  no  liturgy,  and  no  discipline,  and  would  give 

1  For  thinking  circles,  it  issues  the  Revue  de  Theologie  et  de  Philosophic 
Chretienne,  founded  fifteen  years  ago  by  Scherer  and  Colani.  It  influences 
the  general  public  by  the  daily  political  paper,  Le  Temps,  and  the  Revue 
Oermanique.  The  Strasburg  Revue  and  Paris  Lien,  are  for  the  special 
benefit  of  Protestants  in  general ;  while  the  Disciple  de  Jesus  Christ  and 
Piete-Churite  are  designed  for  children  and  uneducated  persons. 


THE    CRITICAL   SCHOOL.  393 

power  to  every  one  to  preach  contradictory  and  nega- 
tive doctrines  in  its  pulpits.1 

The  association  of  Rationalists  in  Paris  is  called  the 
Liberal  Protestant  Union.  It  claims  that  Protestantism, 
as  represented  by  the  churches,  has  ceased  to  be  progres- 
sive and  civilizing.  According  to  its  platform,  there  is  no 
religious  authority  but  free  examination  ;  while  hostility 
to  all  common  symbols,  and  to  all  profession  of  faith,  is  a 
duty.  The  Union  was  immediately  opposed.  Among 
other  indications  of  the  ill-favor  with  which  it  was  receiv- 
ed was  a  Remonstrance,  signed  by  some  of  the  most  dis- 
tinguished laymen  of  Paris.  Their  language  in  defense 
of  the  Bible  as  authority  for  faith  was  unequivocal.  "We 
do  not  believe,"  they  said,  "  that  righteousness  is  indif- 
ference ;  nor  do  we  believe  that  there  is,  or  can  be,  a 
church  without  a  doctrine,  a  religious  doctrine,  which 
unites  believers  and  forms  the  bond  of  the  Church." 

The  opinions  of  the  French  Critical  School  of  The- 
ology, at  which  the  Remonstrance  was  aimed,  may 
be  briefly  stated. 

No  system  is  adopted.  It  professes  none,  and 
studiously  avoids  the  embarrassment  consequent  upon 
any  obligation.  Colani  says,  "We  do  not  present  to 
our  readers  any  fixed  system ;  we  have  none ;  we  are 
asking  for  one  conscientiously,  patiently  ;  with  all  our 
contemporaries,  we  are  in  the  midst  of  an  epoch  of  tran- 
sition. We  call  around  us  those  who,  dissatisfied  with 
the  forms  of  an  antiquated  system  of  dogma,  and  ful- 
ly  admitting  salvation  by  Christ  alone,  desire  to  labor 
in  raising  the  new  edifice  which  is  to  be  built  on  the 
solid  basis  of  Him  who  is  at  once  the  son  of  man  and 
the  Son  of  God.  .  .  .  Not  a  school,  not  a  system, 
but  a  tendency  is  that  which  we  represent.    The  device 

1  M.  De  Coninck,  Christian  Work,  April,  1863. 


394  HISTOEY    OF    EATIONALISM. 

on  our  banner  is  'The  True  Development  of  Chris 
tian  Thought.' " 1  It  is  difficult  to  arrive  at  a  knowledge 
of  what  this  leader  is  so  modest  as  to  call  only  a  "  ten- 
dency.1' It  claims  to  have  the  right  of  judgment  con 
cerning  all  the  truths  of  the  Bible ;  holds  that  the  Ha 
chelle  Confession  is  a  very  good  monument  of  the  faith 
of  the  fathers,  but  should  not  now  be  imposed ;  that 
the  Bible  has  no  more  authority  than  the  books  of  Plato 
or  Aristotle ;  that  each  man  has  a  revelation  in  himself, 
free  from  the  imperfections  of  the  Mosaic  and  Christian 
revelations ;  that  science,  criticism,  and  examination 
open  the  only  path  to  truth  ;  that  miracles  should  be 
discarded  ;  that  Protestantism  has  lost  sight  of  its  mis- 
sion ;  and  that  a  second  Reformation,  embodied  in  the 
Church  of  the  Future,  is  needed  to  complete  the  first.2 

An  acknowledged  leader  of  the  liberal  party  has 
made  some  statements  which  more  nearly  approach  the 
enunciation  of  a  system  than  we  have  been  able  to 
find  in  any  other  authority  of  French  Rationalism. 

M.  Re"ville  says,  "The  modern  Protestant  theology 
[Rationalism]  aspires  not  to  deny  the  doctrines  of 
the  Reformation  absolutely,  but  to  preserve  the  truth 
that  is  in  them  by  filtering  them  through  a  medium 
more  conformed  to  our  science  and  our  reason.  The 
dogmas  of  original  sin,  the  trinity,  the  incarnation,  justi- 
fication by  faith,  future  rewards,  and  the  inspiration  of 
the  sacred  writings,  may  serve  as  examples.  On  the  first 
of  these  dogmas,  renouncing  the  idea  of  an  original  per- 
fection, the  reality  of  which  is  contrary  to  reason,  and 
to  all  our  historical  analogies,  modern  theology  would 
insist  on  the  evil  influence  which  determines  to  evil  an 

1  Progress  of  Religious  Thought  in  the  Protestant  Church  of  France, 
pp.  8-9. 

2  Vfiglise  Reformee  de  France  et  la  Theologie  N'ouvelle,  pp.  5-7. 


m.  reville's  opinions.  395 

individual  plunged  in  society  where  sin  reigns,  on  the 
necessary  passage  from  a  state  of  innocence  to  a  state  of 
moral  consciousness  and  struggle,  on  the  fall  which  man 
endures  when  he  sinks  from  his  higher  nature  to  his 
lower,  and  renounces  God's  will  to  serve  his  own.  As 
to  the  trinity,  avoiding  the  scholastic  and  contradictory 
tritheism  of  the  old  creeds,  intent  on  vigorously  pre- 
serving God's  essential  unity,  and  at  the  same  time  his 
conscious  or  personal  life,  this  theology  attaches  itself 
to  the  grand  idea  of  the  Divine  Word  pervading  the 
world,  as  the  uttered  thought,  the  objective  revelation 
of  God,  conceived  as  manifesting  himself  to  himself  in 
his  works.  In  humanity  this  eternal  word  becomes  the 
Holy  Spirit,  the  light  which  lightens  every  man  coming 
into  the  world,  but  which  shines  in  all  its  splendor  in 
Jesus  Christ.  In  this  series  of  ideas  the  incarnation 
loses  that  stamp  of  absolute  contradiction  which  it  takes 
from  the  orthodox  idea  of  one  and  the  same  person, 
who  is  at  the  same  time  God  and  man,  finite  and  infinite, 
localized  and  omnipresent,  praying  and  prayed  to,  know 
ing  and  not  knowing  all  things,  and  impeccable,  yet 
tempted.  The  pure  and  real  humanity  of  Christ  is  the 
basis  of  the  system,  and  the  system  may  be  summed  up 
in  these  words :  The  Son  of  Man  is  the  Son  of  God. 
Man  is  justified  by  faith,  not  as  the  old  orthodoxy 
taught,  that  is,  because  he  believes  that  satisfaction  was 
given  to  God  in  his  place  and  on  his  behalf,  but  because 
he  has  confidence  in  the  eternal  love  of  God,  and  in  his 
own  destination  for  good,  as  evidenced  by  Christ  in  his 
life  and  in  his  death. 

"The  eternity  of  future  sufferings  gives  place  to  an 
idea  more  in  conformity  with  sound  philosophy,  and  the 
revelation  of  infinite  love,  according  to  which,  pain  re- 
sulting from  sin,  can  have  for  its  object  only  the  ame- 

27 


396  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

lioration  of  the  sinner,  and  special  stress  is  laid  on  the 
spiritual  truth  that  heaven  and  hell  are  much  less  differ- 
ent places  than  different  states  of  the  soul.  The  inspi- 
ration of  the  Scriptures,  that  dogma  the  truth  of  which 
consisted  in  the  scriptural  value  of  the  Biblical  books, 
as  giving  a  sure  basis  for  faith,  as  supplying  aliment  to 
piety,  and  elevating  the  heart,  more  and  more  loses 
its  miraculous  character  to  approach  analogous  phenom- 
ena drawn  from  religions  in  general,  or  from  other 
fields  where  the  mind  of  man  reveals  itself  as  inspired. 
The  change  of  views,  however,  does  not  take  from  the 
Bible  its  character  as  a  truly  divine  book ;  still  does  it 
remain  in  religion  the  Book  of  Books."  * 

It  is  unsafe  to  adduce  the  testimony  of  any  mem- 
ber of  this  school  as  an  absolute  standard  of  the  theo- 
logical position  of  all  the  rest.  There  is  a  wide  diver- 
sity of  opinion  among  them,  as  any  one  will  perceive 
who  has  attempted  the  comparison.  But  after  examin- 
ing the  individual  opinions  of  some  of  these  men,  it  will 
not  be  difficult  to  form  a  correct  judgment  of  their  in- 
tellectual position  as  a  whole. 

One  of  the  most  laborious  of  the  number  is  Edmond 
Scherer,  formerly  Professor  of  Theology  in  the  Univer- 
sity of  Geneva.  His  first  point  of  departure  from  or- 
thodoxy was  on  the  inspiration  and  authority  of  the 
Bible.  He  became  absorbed  in  German  Rationalistic 
criticism,  and  adopted  its  leading  principles.  His  skep- 
tical views  caused  such  offense  that  he  was  led  to  re- 
sign his  position,  when  he  soon  commenced  the  pub- 
lication of  his  views  in  the  new  Revue  de  Tlieologie 
at  Strasburg.  He  has  subsequently  kept  aloof  from 
all   participation    in    the   State    Church   and   confined 

1  Progress  of  Religious  Thought  in  the  Protestant  Church  of  e>avce. 
pp.  89-90. 


m.  scheeee's  opinions.  397 

himself  mostly  to  writing  essays.  Some  of  them  have 
recently  been  collected  into  a  volume,  entitled  Miscella- 
nies of  Religious  Criticism} 

Protestantism,  according  to  Scherer,  has  a  right  to 
free  inquiry  Once  give  it  the  Bible  as  authority,  and 
you  drive  it  back  to  Catholicism.  This  is  what  has  al- 
ready been  done  by  Protestants,  whose  religion  has 
numbered  its  days.  Authority  has  been  its  ruin,  and 
now  it  has  no  liberty.  The  Evangelists  contradict  each 
other  in  many  instances.  The  Apostles  failed  to  quote 
the  Old  Testament  correctly.  Their  gross  errors  are 
sufficient  of  themselves  to  overthrow  all  the  claims  of 
Scripture  to  authority.  It  is  not  certain  that  the  Gospel 
of  John  is  authentic;  that  the  discourses  of  Jesus  are 
correctly  reported ;  that  Jesus  taught  his  consubstanti- 
ality  with  the  Father ;  that  the  divinity  of  Christ  in- 
volves his  omnisicence  ;  that  Christ  had  any  intention 
to  decide  questions  of  criticism  and  canonicity ;  that  he 
believed  in  the  inspiration  of  the  Old  Testament ;  that 
he  acknowledged  the  divinity  of  the  Canticles  and  Ec- 
clesiastes ;  or  that,  if  he  sanctioned  the  inspiration  of 
the  Old  Testament,  he  did  the  same  thing  concerning 
the  New. 

The  New  Testament,  says  Scherer,  is  full  *>£  errata. 
It  contains  different  records  of  the  same  facts.  Take  as 
an  example  the  conversion  of  Saul,  of  which  there  are 
three  accounts  in  the » Acts.  The  discourses  of  Christ 
are  described  in  different  contexts ;  the  same  discourses 
are  not  related  in  similar  words ;  and  there  is  no  exact- 
ness in  the  narratives.  There  are  differences  in  the 
Gospels,  affecting  the  ideas  and  actions  of  Jesm,  which 
sometimes   amount   to   positive   contradictions.      They 

1  Progress  of  Religious  Thought  in  the  Protestant  Church  of  France. 
Biographical  Notices,  pp.  iii.-iv. 


398  HISTORY    OF    RATION ALLsM. 

exist  also  between  the  first  three  Gospels  and  that 
of  John.  The  last  Evangelist  gives  a  very  different  ac- 
count of  many  points  in  the  history  of  the  passion  and 
resurrection  of  Christ,  especially  in  respect  to  the  last 
Supper  and  the  chronology  of  the  whole  passion-week. 
Christ  announced  his  second  coming  as  near  at  hand. 
Hence  he,  or  the  Evangelists  in  reporting  him,  were 
grossly  in  error.  There  are,  in  a  word,  serious  objec- 
tions to  accepting  the  New  Testament  as  authoritative ; 
because  we  find  in  it  the  use  of  the  Septuagint ;  quota- 
tions from  the  Old  Testament  in  a  sense  not  intended  in 
the  original ;  influence  of  Jewish  traditions ;  Rabbini- 
cal arguments ;  uncertainty  in  reports  of  the  discourses 
of  Christ ;  contradictions  between  different  accounts  of 
the  same  facts ;  errors  in  chronology  and  history ;  and 
Messianic  hopes  and  expectations  not  in  accordance  with 
external  events.  What  right  have  we,  therefore,  to  ac- 
cept as  infallible  that  in  which  we  find  such  an  admix- 
ture of  error  ?  It  is  the  duty  of  religious  science  to 
reconcile  revelation  with  the  growing  requirements  of 
human  thought,  and  to  smooth  over  the  transition  from 
the  dogma  of  the  past  to  that  of  the  future.  Dogmatic 
exegesis  does  this  by  separating  the  substance  from 
the  form,  faith  from  formulas,  and  by  distinguishing 
and  pointing  out  the  religious  element  under  the  tem- 
porary expression  which  reveals  it. 

What  then  is  the  Bible  which  Scherer's  exegesis  pre- 
sents to  us  ?  Faith  in  it  rests  on  two  bases ;  first,  the  in- 
spiration and  canon  of  Scripture ;  and  second,  the  sub- 
jects  or  organs  of  inspiration.  The  first  is  untenable  and 
false,  for  the  stand-point  of  authority  has  already  spoil- 
ed everything  in  our  theology.  Authority  determines 
beforehand  what  we  must  believe,  whereas  reason  alone 
should  perform  that  office.     There  is  a  communicated 


m.  scherer's  opinions.  399 

revelation  to  our  own  minds  which  should  claim  the 
high  office  of  authority.  The  Bible,  in  an  objective 
sense,  is  a  divine  book,  because  it  contains  the  remem- 
brance of  the  most  important  events  in  the  religious  his- 
tory  of  the  world.  Judaism  and  Christianity  are  there 
in  their  completeness.  The  Bible  is  therefore  more  than 
a  book ;  it  presents  us  with  the  living  personality  of 
those  who  founded  Christ's  Kingdom  on  earth.  Inspi- 
ration, such  as  we  find  in  the  Scriptures,  is  not  confined 
to  them,  for  it  is  immanent  wherever  there  is  intelligence. 
The  spirit  of  the  Bible  is  the  eternal  spirit  of  God ;  but 
it  is  the  same  spirit  which  has  inspired  all  good  men  in 
past  Scriptural  periods, — the  Augustines,  St.  Bernards, 
Arndts,  and  Vinets.  It  is  a  falsehood  of  theology  against 
faith  to  deny  these  men  the  same  kind  of  inspiration 
which  we  find  in  the  Scriptures.  Biblical  inspiration 
differs  in  different  writers.  They  wrote  from  diverse 
stand-points.  The  chroniclers  of  Scripture  told  all  they 
knew,  but  not  much  could  be  expected  of  them.  Who 
would  dare  to  speak  of  the  inspiration  of  the  books  of 
Samuel,  Ruth,  Kings,  and  Chronicles  ? 

But  let  us  hear  what  Scherer  says  of  the  miracles  of 
Christ.  No  evangelical  facts  should  be  taken  as  points 
of  departure  in  testing  Christianity.  It  is  absurd  to 
speak  of  Christ's  miracles  as  being  designed  for  mani- 
festations of  his  divinity.  Conceding  them  to  be  prodi- 
gies, they  are  far  below  those  of  Moses  and  Elijah. 
Christ  did  not  work  miracles  in  attestation  of  his  power. 
He  performed  them  in  connection  with  his  own  words 
or  expressions  of  other  persons.  When  he  gave  miracu- 
lous power  to  his  disciples,  he  simply  did  it  as  a  means 
of  beneficence.  Miracles,  in  their  true  sense,  are  op- 
posed to  both  the  Jewish  and  Christian  notions  of  them. 
Those  of  Christ  are  not  the   attestation  and  recommen- 


400  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

elation  of  his  ministry;  they  are  acts  of  that  ministiy ; 
acts  which  have  not  their  value  exterior  to  themselves ; 
whose  value  is  not  in  their  argumentative  character,  but 
in  their  own  intrinsic  nature.  They  constitute  an  in- 
tegral part  of  the  gospel,  but  nothing  more.  Christ's 
cures  are  not  solely  the  symbol,  they  are  the  counter- 
part of  the  spiritual  redemption  brought  by  him  unto 
the  world.  The  authenticity  of  miracles  is  another  ques- 
tion, and  belongs  altogether  to  exegesis.1  Taking  the 
Scripture  narrative  as  a  whole,  we  greatly  err  in  attach- 
ing any  authority  to  it.  Mohammed  and  the  false 
prophets  should  be  placed  side  by  side  with  Moses  and 
Jesus  Christ ;  for  the  religion  of  Christ  is  a  purely  hu- 
man one,  like  that  of  Buddha  and  the  Arabian  prophet. 
The  Mosaic  account  of  creation  is  evidently  absurd;  for 
man  was  at  first  a  monkey. 

M.  Larroque  contends  that  the  time  has  now  come 
for  a  total  departure  from  the  last  pagan  tradition. 
Christianity  has  passed  its  alloted  time,  and  is  now  in 
its  death-pangs.  Material  interests  claim  minute  atten- 
tion. All  we  want  is  the  assertion  of  a  pure,  ra- 
tional religion.  It  was  a  great  misfortune  that  Marcus 
Aurelius  did  not  popularize  the  theism  which  he  ex- 
pressed in  his  writings.  It  would  not  then  have  been 
possible  for  Constantine  to  establish  the  Christian  reli- 
gion, and  the  world  would  have  been  spared  the  ir- 
ruption of  the  barbarians,  and  the  many  subsequent  pe- 
riods of  darkness.2 

M.  Rougemont  adheres  to  the  accommodation- 
theory.  It  is  the  only  method  of  relief  in  tin's  day  of 
darkness.     God,  in  revelation,  has  only  addressed  him- 

1  Essays:  Theological  Conversations;  Errata  of  the  New  Testament; 
What  the  Bible  is  ;   The  Miracles  of  Christ. 

*  Examen  Critique  des  Doctrines  de  la  Religion  Chrefienne ;  Renova- 
tion Religieuse. 


M.    COLANl's    OPINIONS.  40 1 

self  to  the  physical  man.  He  communicated  his  spirit 
— not  the  Holy  Spirit-  -to  the  prophets.  But  that  was 
exterior  action.  The  sacred  volume  is  the  historic  wit- 
ness of  revelation,  and  is  merely  a  relative  necessity. 
The  Church  has  existed  before  the  Scriptures,  and  could 
still  live  if  they  were  extinguished.1 

M.  Colani  is  prominent  both  as  preacher  and  writer 
A  pastor  of  Strasburg  being  sick,  he  was  urged  to  sup- 
ply  the  pulpit  for  a  few  Sabbaths.  Though  he  ac- 
cepted with  great  reluctance,  he  was  successful  in  pleasing 
the  congregation.  He  was  chosen  permanent  pastor, 
and  has  continued  the  functions  of  his  office,  together 
with  the  chief  editorship  of  the  Revue  de  TMologie. 
His  opinions  are  to  be  found  in  that  periodical,  and  in 
several  successful  volumes  of  sermons.  He  professes  to 
be  neither  satisfied  with  Eationalism  in  its  destructive 
sense,  nor  with  orthodoxy.  He  is  confessedly  one  of 
the  champions  of  the  Critical  School.  Skepticism,  he 
contends,  is  perfectly  legitimate.  We  are  authorized  to 
doubt ;  our  opinions  are  fallible  ;  we  must  be  prepared 
to  change  them  whenever  we  think  we  can  find  better 
ones  The  Bible  is  intended  to  reveal  to  us  a  life,  not 
a  dogma.  We  find  in  it  no  effort  to  describe  dogmas ; 
no  theological  criticisms  ;  no  system  of  morality.2  Re 
ligious  inspiration  is  nothing  but  an  extraordinary  kin 
dling  of  the  divine  spirit  inherent  in  human  nature. 
The  Scripture  writers  are  imperfect  and  limited  by  their 
own  intelligence.  The  only  way  to  reconcile  religion 
and  science  is  by  history.  We  must  study  man  not  as 
an  individual  or  nation,  but  as  to  his  human  nature. 
By  doing  this  we  will  not  take  a  characteristic  for  the 
man  himself.  Man  is,  by  the  testimony  of  history,  a 
religious  being,  and  history  reveals  his  destiny. 

1  Christ  et  ses  Temoins.  2  Revue  de  Theologie.     Oct.  1853. 


402  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Immortality  is  accepted.  We  have  a  personal  life 
going  into  the  infinite.  Humanity  develops  itself  by 
the  action  of  the  individual  genius,  and  the  individ- 
ual only  successfully  unfolds  himself  by  not  break- 
ing  the  bond  which  unites  him  to  the  general  df^e] 
opment  of  his  species.  We  must  consider  the  Bible 
as  a  collection  of  documents,  over  which  criticism  has 
absolute  rights.  We  must  distinguish  between  the 
thought  of  Christ  and  that  of  his  historians.  They  in- 
sisted on  what  seemed  to  them  miracles.  Christ  is  in 
open  conflict  with  the  principle  which  would  make 
miracles  the  necessary  sign  of  a  true  revelation.  He  has 
taught  the  world  to  recognize  God  in  the  regular  opera- 
tion of  natural  laws.  He  never  lays  down  any  dog- 
matic conditions,  and  does  not  make  religious  character 
dependent  on  the  reception  of  any  class  of  doctrines. 
We  must  have  faith  in  him  alone,  and  not  in  his  words. 
To  be  a  Christian  is  to  participate  in  the  general  life  of 
the  Christian  church,  and  to  take  part  with  others  in 
the  labor  of  the  Christian  mind.1 

M.  Pecaut  affirms  that  the  present  position  of  the 
French  Protestant  church  is  no  longer  tenable,  for  its 
principle  of  doctrinal  faith  restrains  free  examination. 
It  is,  however,  in  a  transition-period,  and  there  is 
an  indication  of  progress  in  the  present  interest  in 
great  questions  of  theology.  For  the  doctrines  of  Prot- 
estantism we  should  substitute  a  pure,  simple  Deism ; 
we  should  substitute  philanthropism  for  morality.  The 
Bible  is  not  entitled  to  authority,  for  it  has  no  trace  of 
inspiration.  There  is  no  such  thing  as  mediation.  We 
must  not  attach  too  much  importance  to  the  Messianic 
idea,  for  this  would  imply  a  special  revelation.     The 

Essay :  Views  and  Aims.  Sermons  :  What  there  is  in  the  Bible  ;  Tht 
Simplicity  of  the  Gospel. 


M.    GROTZ'S    OPINIONS.  403 

Gospels  rest  on  a  very  insecure  basis.  The  theses  of 
Paul  betray  a  continued  oscillation  between  the  rays 
tic  and  Jewish  conceptions.  As  a  whole,  the  Bible 
is  not  divine,  and  we  should  at  once  discard  faith  in  its 
authoritative  character.  The  only  way  by  which  Christ 
uow  acts  upon  persons  is  by  the  force  of  his  example 
and  ideas,  just  as  Moses,  Mohammed,  and  Socrates  now 
influence  men.  Religious  faith  is  not  necessarily  faith 
in  Christ.  He  was  not  free  from  sin  in  a  moral  sense  ; 
he  had  a  natural  sinfulness  by  virtue  of  his  humanity.1 
M.  Grotz,  pastor  at  Nismes,  was  once  under  the  in 
fluence  of  A.  Monod,  but  owing  to  the  withdrawal  of 
Scherer  from  orthodoxy,  he  joined  the  Rationalists.  He 
holds  that  revelation  is  not  peculiar  to  the  Scriptures. 
There  are  many  kinds  of  revelation,  and  we  find  them 
continually  in  history.  Every  manifestation  of  God  is 
a  revelation.  We  must  always  examine  freely  and  crit- 
ically ;  nowhere  does  Christ  enjoin  the  contrary.  We 
need  to  use  our  intellectual  faculties  and  conscience. 
The  greatest  revelation  is  Christ, — not  his  doctrines,  but 
himself.  We  should  always  keep  prophecy  and  mira- 
cles in  the  background,  for  they  are  minor  questions  and 
should  occupy  an  humble  position.2 

Of  all  the  members  of  the  Critical  School,  Renan  is 
the  best  known  to  the  English  and  American  public. 
He  has  written  a  number  of  works  on  various  topics,3 
but  it  is  by  his  Life  of  Jesus  that  he  has  gained  great- 
est celebrity.  God,  Providence,  and  immortality  are, 
with  him,  dull  words  about  which  philosophy  has  long 
played  and  finally  interpreted  in  the  most  refined  sense. 

1  Le  Christ  et  la  Conscience. 

'Essay:    What  is  Revelation  t 

*  Studies  of  Religious  History  ;  On  the  Origin  of  Language  ;  Averroet 
and  Averroism  ;  History  and  comparative  System  of  the  Semitic  Language*  , 
Book  of  Job  ;  Essays  on  Morals  and  Criticism  ;  Solomon's  Song. 


404  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

There  is  no  reason  why  a  pappoose  should  be  immor- 
tal. Religion  is  a  part  of  man's  nature,  and,  in  return, 
he  is  benefited  and  elevated  by  it.  God's  revelation  is 
in  man's  innate  consciousness.  There  is  no  necessity  for 
miracles ;  all  that  we  need  in  this  life  is  the  mere  resu  it 
of  the  operation  of  natural  forces.  The  present  age  is 
one  in  which  we  should  freely  criticise  whatever  comes 
up  for  acceptance  ;  but  it  is  wrong  to  assume  the  prop- 
agandist. Let  men  have  their  own  views ;  we  have  no 
right  to  force  others  upon  them.  Man  is  very  much  at- 
tached to  the  theories  contained  in  the  world's  first  re- 
ligion. He  has  given  it  symbolical  expression,  for  it  is 
thus  that  religion  will  always  embody  itself.  Man 
wants  some  way  by  which  to  tell  how  and  what  he 
thinks  of  God.1 

The  Gospels  were  all  written,  Renan  contends,  in 
the  first  century.  The  Jews  were  anticipating  some- 
body who  would  prove  a  means  of  their  improvement. 
Christ  fitted  the  ideal,  and  the  way  was  smoothed  for 
his  success  by  their  visions,  dreams,  and  hopes.  The 
beautiful  scenery  of  lake,  valley,  mountain,  and  river 
developed  his  poetic  temperament.  Then  the  Old  Tes- 
tament made  a  deep  impression  on  him,  for  he  imagined 
it  was  full  of  voices  pointing  him  out  as  the  great  future 
reformer.  He  was  unacquainted  with  Hellenic  culture, 
and  hence  it  was  his  misfortune  not  to  know  that 
miracles  had  been  wisely  rejected  by  the  schools  which 
had  received  the  Greek  wisdom.  In  course  of  time  a 
period  of  intoxication  came  upon  him.  He  imagined 
that  he  was  to  bring  about  a  new  church  which  he 
everywhere  calls  the  Kingdom  of  God.  His  views 
were  Utopian ;  he  lived  in  a  dream  life,  and  his  ideal 
ism  elevated  him  above  all  other  agitators.     He  found 

1  Miscellanies. 


405 

ed  a  sect,  and  his  disciples  became  intoxicated  with  his 
own  dreams.  But  he  did  not  sanction  all  their  excesses : 
for  instance,  he  did  not  believe  the  inexact  and  contra- 
dictory genealogies  which  we  find  in  his  historians. 

Yet  he  was  a  thorough  thaumaturo-ist  and  sometimes 
indulged  a  gloomy  feeling  of  resentment.  His  miracles 
are  greatly  exaggerated.  He  probably  did  some  things 
which,  to  ignorant  minds,  appeared  prodigies,  but 
they  were  very  few  in  number.  He  never  rose  from 
the  dead ;  he  had  never  raised  Lazarus.  By  and  by, 
the  love  of  his  disciples  created  him  into  a  divinity, 
clothed  him  with  wonderful  powers,  made  him  greater 
than  he  had  ever  pretended  to  be.  Hence  Christianity 
arose.  It  was  love  like  that  of  Mary  Magdalene, 
"  a  hallucinated  woman,  whose  passion  gave  to  the 
world  a  resurrected  God.1' l  Kenan's  position  will  ex- 
plain all  that  he  says  of  Christ.  He  looks  at  him  from 
the  stand-point  of  naturalism.  Christ  is  no  mediator. 
As  an  American  writer  has  well  said  :  "  From  this  life 
of  Christ  no  one  would  ever  infer  that  there  was  sin  in 
the  world  and  that  Christ  came  to  save  sinners." 

The  reception  of  the  Life  of  Jesus  was  most  hearty 
throughout  France.  Criticism  from  every  side  was 
employed  upon  it.  Over  a  hundred  thousand  copies 
were  soon  sold,  and  translations  were  made  into  all  the 
European  tongues.  Its  greatest  success  was  in  Roman 
Catholic  countries.  In  France,  Italy,  Austria,  Belgium, 
and  Spain  it  has  found  a  warm  reception,  but  in  the 
north  of  Europe,  Protestant  Germany,  and  England,  it 
has  had  less  success.  As  to  the  ultimate  effect  of  the 
work,  v  b  have  every  reason  to  value  the  opinion  of  M. 
de  Pressense,  who  has  surveyed  the  whole  ground,  and 
also  written  the   best  criticism    upon    Penan  that  has 

1  Life  of  Jesus,    American  Edition. 


406  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

appeared  in  any  country.     He  says  :  "Iain  persuaded 
that   the    results    accomplished  by  it  will  be,  in  the 
main,  good  ;  that  it  will  not  shake  the  faith  of  any  true 
believer  ;  that  it  will  produce,  with  many  of  those  who 
were  wavering,  a  good  reaction,  which  will  bring  them 
back  to  a  positive  faith  ;  and  that  the  common  sense  of 
the  people  will  not  fail  to  see  that  it  is  not  thus  that 
history  is  written,  and  that  the  problem  of  the  origin 
of  Christianity   still  remains  unexplained  in  its  grand- 
eur."     It  is   likely  that  an  advantage    will   accrue  to 
Renan  from  the  recent  action  of  the  Government.     He 
occupied  the  chair  of  Oriental  Languages  in  the  College 
of  France,  but  was  deposed  by  the  Minister  of  Public 
Instruction.     Boasting  that  he  would  still  retain  his 
title,  he  continued  to  teach  in  his  private  house.     He 
lost  his  salary,  but  claimed  the  martyr-crown.     When 
last  heard  from,  he  was  traveling  in  the  countries  de- 
scribed in  the  New  Testament  as  the  scene  of  the  labors 
of  the  apostles.     His  avowed  purpose  is  to  publish  an 
attack  upon  the  apostolic  history. 

Athanase  Coquerel,  jr.,  editor  of  the  Lien,  and  a  cele- 
brated preacher,  justly  takes  rank  among  the  leaders 
of  the  Critical  School.     He  has  recently  been  the  sub- 
ject of  an  excitement  of  little  less  absorbing  interest 
than   the   sensation   occasioned   by    Renan.     Fourteen 
years   ago,  Martin  Paschoud,  one  of  the  Rationalistic 
Reformed  pastors  of  Paris,  selected  him  as  his  suffragan 
or  assistant.     The  Consistory  ratified  the  appointment. 
In  the  Reformed  church  the  assistant  pastors  do 
not  hold  their  office  by  the  same  title  as   the  titular 
or  regular   pastors.     The   continuance   of  the    former 
is  subject  to  renewal  every  two  or  three  years  by  the 
Presbyterial  Council.     But  the  regular  pastors,  when 
first  nominated  by  the  Consistory,  are  afterwards  con- 


m.  coquerel's  opinions.  407 

finned  by  the  Government.  They  cannot  be  removed 
except  by  the  action  of  the  state.  This  is  the  reason 
why  so  many  Rationalistic  pastors  are  now  in  full  pos- 
session of  prominent  Protestant  pulpits  in  France.  No 
synod,  consistory,  or  presbytery  has  power  to  try  them 
for  heresy.  In  fact,  there  is  no  standard  of  doctrine  by 
which  heresy  can  be  tested.  There  being  no  General 
Assembly,  with  power  either  to  establish  new  standards 
of  doctrine  or  to  give  vitality  to  the  old  ones,  the  pul- 
pits of  the  Reformed  church  are  open  to  every  form  of 
teaching  that  may  profess  to  be  Christian.1 

Coquerel's  last  renewal  expired  about  the  end  of 
1863,  when  his  re-appointment  became  necessaiy.  But 
his  decline  into  Rationalism  had  been  so  rapid  that  the 
Presbyterial  Council  refused  to  renew  the  mandate,  and 
he  lost  his  position  as  suffragan  by  a  vote  of  twelve 
against  three.  He  subsequently  published  a  confession 
of  his  faith,  addressed  to  his  former  catechumens,  in 
which  the  only  point  of  real  defense  which  he  substan- 
tiates is  the  charge  of  Pantheism.  He  strongly  affirms 
his  belief  in  the  personality  of  God.  From  M.  Co- 
querel's essays  we  can  derive  a  correct  view  of  his  Ra- 
tionalistic principles.  He  affirms  that  his  opinions  on 
the  trinity,  original  sin,  the  atonement,  inspiration  of 
the  Scriptures,  and  other  doctrines,  called  fundamental, 
are  not  a  little,  but  altogether  different  from  the  ortho- 
dox views.  He  does  not  consider  the  Bible  inspired, 
and  has  therefore  written  a  work  in  defense  of  Renan, 
his  "  dear  and  learned  friend."  As  for  the  Gospels,  he 
finds  in  them  the  sublimest  of  all  histories  on  the  one 
hand,  and  traces  of  legends  on  the  other ;  doctrines  and 
precepts  of  eternal  validity  in  one  place,  and  stains  of 
the  errors  of  the  age  in  which  the  books  were  written, 

1  McClintock,  Letter  of  March,  1864,  in  New  York  Methodist. 


408  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

in  another.  Reason  has  the  right  of  judging  all  the 
truths  of  revelation.  The  Confession  of  Faith  of  the 
sixteenth  century  is  a  very  good  monument  of  the  faith 
of  our  fathers,  but  should  not  now  be  imposed.  The 
Apostles  and  Evangelists  never  made  any  claim  to  infal 
libility.  There  are  two  groups  of  views  concerning 
Christ  in  the  New  Testament :  Firs%  that  contained  in 
Paul's  epistles,  especially  in  Hebrews.  Paul  did  not 
identify  Christ  with  God,  nor  did  he  misconceive  the 
humanity  of  Christ,  and  attribute  preexistence  to  him. 
Second.  All  the  second  group,  consisting  of  the  epistles 
of  James  and  Peter,  the  Acts,  and  the  Apocalypse,  rest 
on  a  purely  historical  view.  To  the  writers  of  the  lat- 
ter, Jesus  seemed  the  Messiah ;  hence  we  have  from 
them  all  that  is  extraordinary  in  his  history.  Christ 
meant  in  Matt.  xi.  27,  that  he  had  received  his 
knowledge  from  God.  He  did  not  refer  to  his  own 
essence.  Literal  interpretation  of  Scripture  does  not 
bring  us  to  a  knowledge  of  Christ.  His  humanity, 
being  all  that  is  valuable  in  his  character,  contains  the 
mystery  that  belongs  more  or  less  to  every  individual. 
His  commission  from  God  does  not  differ  from  that  of 
other  men.  That  which  distinguishes  him  from  his 
species  was  his  knowledge  of  humanity  and  of  the 
future.  He  had  not  omniscience,  nor  infallibility ;  noth- 
ing but  superior  knowledge.  He  had  his  gross  defects  ; 
for  example,  his  belief  in  the  power  of  evil  spirits.  Yet 
Christ  was  not  a  real  sinner,  and  he  represented  and 
realized  progress  without  any  arrest.  Thus  he  is  the 
ideal  and  model  of  humanity. 

That  which  distinguishes  Coquerel's  views  from 
Socinianism  is  his  Christology.  Contending  for  the 
moral  purity  of  Christ,  he  holds  that  he  was  the  second 
Adam.     But  Christ  was  not  the  Son  of  God.     He  was 


INFLUENCE  OF  FRENCH  SKEPTICISM.  409 

so  denominated  just  as  we  term  a  hero  the  Son  of  Mars. 
We  must  look  at  the  Scriptures  in  the  light  of  reason  ; 
then  we  shall  behold  the  fabulous  element.  Many 
parts  differ  in  quality,  while  some  are  not  authentic. 
The  Second  Epistle  of  Peter,  for  example,  was  neithei 
written  by  that  apostle  nor  was  it  a  product  of  his  age. 
But  authority  does  not  rest  in  the  letter,  or  in  the  leaves 
of  Scripture.  The  divine  spirit  acts  in  the  soul  freely 
and  independently  of  the  letter.  It  is  high  time  that  we 
renounce  the  puerile,  disrespectful,  and  contradictory 
worship  of  the  letter.     The  letter  killeth. 

The  French  Critical  School  numbers  among  its  ad- 
herents many  young  and  talented  theologians,  some  of 
whom  are  already  distinguished  for  profound  learning 
and  literary  activity.  But  the  history  of  Skepticism 
discloses  the  fact  that  religious  error  has  always 
attracted  the  young  to  its  embrace.  One  half  of  the 
triumphs  of  infidelity  are  attributable  to  the  flattering 
promises  which  it  makes  to  those  who  have  not  lived 
long  enough  to  know  that  infidelity  is  nothing  but  a 
colossal  structure  of  egotism.  The  deluding  voice  says 
to  the  young  man^,  "  You  live  in  a  progressive  age,  and 
why  are  you  not  progressive  yourself?  Your  fathers 
believed  the  old  Confessions,  imagined  Christ  to  be  di- 
vine, and  the  Scriptures  inspired.  We  do  not  blame 
them  much,  for  they  knew  no  better.  But,  if  you  fol- 
low in  their  footsteps,  the  world  will  never  give  you  any 
credit  for  originality ;  your  slow  chariot  will  move  on 
in  the  old  rut ;  you  will  never  accomplish  anything ; 
your  generation  will  be  iu  advance  of  you.  Be  a  man  ! 
The  field  of  usefulnesss,  prominence,  and  honor,  opens 
before  you.  Think  for  yourself!  The  Bible  is  a  book 
of  the  past,  and  you  should  have  moie  manliness  and 
independence  than  to  be  guided  by  its  declarations." 


410  HISTORY  OF  RATIONALISM. 

It  is  not  surprising  that  the  temptation  to  fall  into 
this  snare  is,  for  many,  too  great  to  be  resisted.  This 
is  true  not  only  of  many  young  Frenchmen,  but  also  of 
large  numbers  of  Englishmen  and  Americans,  who  are 
casting  about  for  a  permanent  creed.  When  they  yield, 
they  little  dream  of  the  unhappiness  in  store  for  them. 
They  never  have  the  consolation  derived  from  settled 
opinions ;  life  passes  without  a  fixed  faith ;  old  age  be- 
comes miserable ;  and  death,  however  much  it  may 
appear  to  be  a  relief,  is  a  step  into  darkness  and 
uncertainty. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

PRANCE   CONTINUED  :  EVANGELICAL  THEOLOGY   OPPOSING 
RATIONALISM. 

The  influences  operating  against  the  integrity  and 
progress  of  the  Protestant  church  of  France  are  opposed 
by  vigorous  agencies.  From  the  clergy  and  laity  men 
of  eminent  endowments  have  arisen  who,  in  ecclesiastical 
councils,  and  through  the  press,  have  defended  evan- 
gelical Christianity  with  a  spirit  worthy  of  their  Hugue- 
not ancestors.  Their  task  has  been  herculean.  At  every 
point  of  the  horizon  infidelity  has  appeared,  and  sought 
to  gain  a  hearing  in  Paris.  Romanism  has  crippled  the 
advance  of  truth  among  the  masses.  The  priesthood 
enjoy  the  favor  of  the  government.  But  the  faithful  and 
learned  adherents  to  orthodoxy  in  all  parts  of  the  em- 
pire are  able  to  cope  with  their  antagonists.  Inspired 
by  such  men  as  Vinet  and  Monod,  they  do  not  stand 
merely  on  the  defensive,  but  are  constantly  aggressive. 

Foremost  of  the  modern  reformers  of  France  stands 
th<3  name  of  M.  Edmond  de  Pressense.  He  is  a  vigor- 
ous writer,  takes  an  active  part  in  public  religious 
movements,  and  edits  the  Revue  Chretienne,  a  theologi- 
cal monthly,  which,  in  both  the  ability  and  orthodoxy 
exhibited  in  its  contents,  has  no  superior  in  the  world 
Through  this  medium  M.  de  Pressense  is  able  to  keep 
up  a  constant  attack  upon  his  adversaries,  and  to  dis 

28 


412  HISTOKY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

covei'  all  their  subterfuges  as  fast  as  they  may  appear. 
We  do  not  look  to  this  theologian  for  a  system,  because 
he  publishes  his  views  mostly  as  replies  to  the  assaults 
of  Rationalism.  Yet,  by  an  analysis  of  his  writings, 
we  shall  find  him  entertaining  such  opinions  as  do  equal 
honor  to  his  devout  spirit  and  gigantic  intellect. 

M.  de  Pressense  believes  that  it  is  the  duty  of  the 
Church  not  to  create  a  moderate  Rationalism  to  take 
the  place  of  the  bolder  system,  but  to  engage  anew  in 
a  vigorous  warfare  against  a  school  that  would  contest 
the  divine  basis  on  which  Christianity  rests.  Such,  he 
holds,  is  the  task  of  the  Christian  philosophy  of  the 
present  day.  Evangelical  Protestantism  is  everywhere 
manifesting  a  necessity  of  reorganization.  And  it  has 
need  to  do  so.  The  Church  of  the  present  day  is  en- 
gaged in  an  inner  crisis,  which,  in  one  respect,  is  legiti- 
mate ;  for  it  has  the  great  burden  of  expurgation  and 
reconstruction  upon  it.  The  burden  consists  in  separat- 
ing the  immortal  truth  of  the  gospel  from  human  im- 
perfections, and  in  finding  in  it  a  more  complete  expres- 
sion. The  present  crisis  has  dangers  and  temptations 
which,  in  our  day,  render  moral  and  intellectual  life 
very  difficult,  and  multiply  shipwrecks  before  our  eyes. 
"  We  wish,"  M.  de  Pressense  declares  for  himself 
and  his  co-laborers,  "  to  serve  the  cause  of  evangelical 
theology,  and  nothing  else.  We  do  not  lift  a  standard 
which  would  summon  all  opinions  and  systems  without 
distinction.  We  stand  upon  the  position  that  there 
is  a  positive  revelation,  which  is  not  the  most  distin 
guished  product  of  human  reason,  but  a  divine  work 
of  redemption  by  him  whom  we  appeal  to  as  the  Sod 
of  Man  and  the  Son  of  God,  who  '  died  for  our  sins  and 
rose  again  for  our  justification.'  It  is  in  the  Holy 
Scriptures  that  we  find  the  revelation  which  supplies 


OPINIONS    OF   M.    DE   PKESSENSE.  41  a 

the  immortal  wants  of  our  conscience.  Apostolical 
Christianity  does  not  come  to  us  as  the  first  theological 
elaboration,  the  first  system  in  a  series.  It  is  Chris- 
tianity itself,  and  consequently  the  primitive  type,  from 
which  we  ought  never  to  wander.  It  is  the  norm  and 
lule  of  theology.  Within  these  limits  we  freely  admit 
the  liberty  of  thought.  Variety  of  opinions  has  noth- 
ing which  frightens  us ;  and  we  would  regard  uni- 
formity and  unanimity  on  secondary  points  as  a  fearful 
evil."  l 

The  purity  of  the  Protestant  theology  of  France  is 
an  aim  constantly  before  M.  de  Pressense.  He  holds 
that,  notwithstanding  the  diversity  of  its  formulas,  this 
theology  is  distinguished  by  two  features :  first,  it  ac- 
cepts the  authority  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  con- 
siders them  alone  as  containing  the  normal  type  of 
Christian  thought ;  second,  it  believes  firmly  in  redemp- 
tion, and  that  is  in  the  salvation  of  ruined  humanity 
brought  about  by  the  sacrifice  of  the  Man-God.  Though 
the  fall  of  man  was  great,  it  was  not  absolute.  Man 
was  ruined  by  apostasy,  but  he  was  not  left  destitute  of 
all  higher  life.  He  retained  some  vestige  of  his  primal 
nature.  A  sense  of  the  divine,  a  religious  aptitude, 
and  the  longing  to  return  to  God,  subsist  in  his  heart. 
These  render  his  redemption  possible ;  for  the  moral 
law,  which  had  been  vindicated  by  the  terrible  conse- 
quences of  the  fall,  is  maintained  in  all  its  integrity  in 
the  restoration  of  the  fallen  creature.  A  certain  har- 
mony was  necessary  between  man  and  God  in  order  to 
salvation.  Had  our  nature  been  thoroughly  perverted, 
no  contact  would  have  been  possible.  We  would 
not  have  had  the  capacity  to  receive  from  God  that 
great  gift  which  was  the  only  mode  of  repairing  the 

1  Revue  Chretienne,  Feb.,  1861. 


414  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

fall  of  beings  created  in  his  image  and  formed  to  pos 
sess  him.1 

This  being  the  condition  of  man,  M.  de  Pressense 
maintains  that  the  result  of  this  divine  teaching  was  to 
convince  him  of  his  weakness  and  evoke  the  desire  of 
salvation.  Therefore  Christianity  comes  in  to  supply  a 
felt  want  of  human  nature.  Here  is  the  first  point  of 
contact  between  conscience  and  revelation.  The  Cross  is 
not  simply  a  testimony  to  the  Father's  love,  like  the 
flowers  at  our  feet,  or  the  starry  sky  above  our  head. 
It  is  the  altar  of  the  great  sacrifice  which  restores  man 
to  God  and  God  to  man.  Christ  is  for  us  a  Saviour  as 
well  as  a  Revealer.8  There  is  one  perfection  which  can 
be  perceived  by  neither  the  eye  of  the  body  nor  by  that 
of  the  soul,  unless  it  be  revealed  by  a  supernatural 
fact.  We  mean  the  mercy  of  God.  Pardon  does  not 
consist  in  the  pure  and  simple  abrogation  of  condemna- 
tion ;  nor  can  it  restore  guilty  humanity  to  communion 
with  God  while  the  state  of  revolt  lasts.  Humanity 
can  only  be  saved  by  returning  to  God,  and  it  will  not 
return  to  God  until  the  divine  law  has  been  perfectly 
filled  by  it.  Christ  alone  is  capable  of  completely 
carrying  out  the  divine  law.  The  obedience  must  go  as 
far  as  sacrifice,  for  the  fall  of  man  demands  it.  By 
coming  here,  Christ  took  upon  himself  the  wrath  of 
God.  He  who  was  without  sin  was  treated  like  a  sin- 
ner. He  suffered  and  died,  but  his  sufferings  and  death 
rose  to  the  height  of  a  free  sacrifice  of  love  and  obedi- 
ence.  Condemnation,  thus  accepted,  is  no  longer  con- 
demnation. It  is  an  act  of  union  with  God,  un  acte  re 
paratewr, — a  redemption. 

The  Bible,  according  to  M.  de  Pressense,  is  not  a 

Religions  be/or*  Christ,  T.  &  T.  Clark,  Edinburgh,  1862. 
*  Le  Redempteur,  Paris,  1854. 


M.    DE    PRESSENSE1S    OPINIONS.  415 

metaphysical  geometry,  but  a  description  of  the  strug- 
gle of  Divine  love  with  human  liberty.  This  great  Bible 
history,  if  we  consider  it  at  the  time  when  the  Redeem- 
er accomplished  our  salvation,  stands  before  us  as  the 
most  striking  consecration  of  the  moral  idea.  Redemp- 
tion is  the  painfully  reestablished  agreement  between 
the  human  and  the  divine  will  by  a  mysterious  sacri- 
fice. It  is  the  most  perfect  reciprocal  penetration  of 
the  divine  and  human  by  means  of  liberty.  If  the 
moral  idea  be  consecrated  by  Christ,  it  will  lead  to  the 
Gospel.  No  one  will  become  a  Christian  unless  he  has 
determined  to  listen  to  his  conscience,  and  never  ques 
tion  concerning  moral  certainty.  We  know  of  no  other 
cornerstone  in  morality  or  in  religion.  But,  in  order 
to  bring  the  truths  of  the  Gospel  home  to  the  heart, 
there  must  be  religious  liberty.  Christianity  is  the  re- 
ligion of  love,  but  to  what  could  a  reconciliation  amount 
which  is  not  free  ?  It  is  the  religion  of  freedom  ;  and 
God,  in  order  to  save  us,  has  need  of  freedom. 

M.  de  Pressense,  in  his  recent  discussion  on  the  reli- 
gious bearings  of  the  French  Revolution,  proves  from 
an  historical  stand-point  the  absolute  necessity  of  the 
separation  of  Church  and  State.  His  excellent  work 
is  entitled,  The  Church  and  the  French  Revolution  ;  a 
History  of  the  Relations  of  Church  and  State  from 
1789  to  1802.  The  motto  upon  the  title-page,  derived 
jointly  from  Mirabeau  and  Cavour,  will  indicate  the 
spirit  of  the  book  :  "  Remember  that  God  is  as  necessary 
as  liberty  to  the  French  people — The  Free  Church  in 
the  Free  State."  We  trust  the  day  is  distant  when 
M.  de  Pressense  will  be  compelled  to  lay  aside  the  pen. 
He  is  engaged  in  a  contest  of  momentous  issues.  That 
he  has  violent  enemies  might  be  expected ;  yet  he  has 
also  the  sympathy  and  prayers  of  l.^any  warm  support- 


£16  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

ers.  Hopeful  and  ardent,  he  sees  indications  of  success 
where  others  imagine  darkness  and  failure.  And  why 
not  ?     He  has  God  and  truth  on  his  side. 

The  Evangelical  School  has  an  able  defender  from 
jhe  laity,  the  distinguished  scholar  and  statesman,  M. 
Guizot.  No  one  has  taken  a  deeper  interest  in  the 
present  controversy  from  its  inception  to  the  present 
time  than  that  venerable  man.  It  had  been  supposed 
for  some  time  that  he  was  meditating  a  reply  to  Kenan's 
Life  of  Jesus.  We  now  have,  as  the  latest  fruit  of  his 
graceful  and  prolific  pen,  the  first  instalment  of  the 
Meditations  upon  the  Christian  Religion,  a  work  which 
will  prove  not  only  a  fitting  answer  to  his  countryman's 
attack  on  the  Gospels,  but  will  serve  equally  well  as 
an  antidote  to  the  present  skeptical  tendencies  of  French 
theology. 

According  to  M.  Guizot,  there  is  a  great  intellectual 
and  social  revolution  now  in  progress.  Its  character- 
istics and  tendencies  are  the  scientific  spirit,  and  the 
preponderance  of  the  democratic  principle  and  of  politi- 
cal liberty.  Christianity  has  submitted  to  tests  and 
trials,  and  it  must  pass  through  those  of  the  present 
day.  It  has  surmounted  all  others,  and  so  it  will  over- 
come this.  Its  essence  and  origin  would  not  be  divine 
if  it  did  not  adapt  itself  to  all  the  different  forms  of 
human  institutions.  Christian  people  must  not  deceive 
themselves  as  to  the  nature  of  the  present  struggle,  the 
perils  which  it  threatens,  and  the  legitimate  arms  with 
which  to  oppose  infidelity.  Skeptics  attack  the  Chris- 
tian religion  with  brutal  fanaticism  and  dexterous  learn- 
ing. They  appeal  to  sincere  convictions,  and  the  worst 
passions.  Some  contest  Christianity  as  false,  others  re- 
ject it  as  too  exacting  and  imposing  excessive  restraint. 

Concerning   the   Church    and   its   relations   to   the 


M.  GUIZOTS    MEDITATIONS.  417 

enemies  of  evangelical  faith,  M.  Guizot  asks,  "  Does  it 
comprehend  properly  and  carry  on  suitably  the  war- 
fare in  which  it  is  engaged  ?  Does  it  tend  to  reestab- 
lish a  real  peace,  and  active  harmonious  relations  be. 
tween  itself  and  that  general  society  in  the  midst  of 
which  it  is  living  ?  In  order  to  answer  these  inquiries, 
he  defines  the  church.  It  is  not  one  branch,  but  the 
whole  body  of  Christ  on  earth.  Therefore,  when  men 
deny  the  supernatural  world,  the  inspiration  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  the  divinity  of  Jesus  Christ,  they  really 
assail  the  whole  body  of  Christians — Romanists,  Prot- 
estants, or  Greeks.  They  are  virtually  attempting  to 
destroy  the  foundations  of  faith  in  all  the  belief  of 
Christians,  whatever  their  particular  differences  of  re- 
ligious opinion  or  forms  of  ecclesiastical  government. 
All  Christian  churches  live  by  faith.  No  form  of  gov- 
ernment, monarchical  or  republican,  concentrated  or 
diffused,  suffices  to  maintain  a  church.  There  is  no 
authority  so  strong,  and  no  liberty  so  broad,  as  to  be 
able  in  a  religious  society  to  dispense  with  the  neces- 
sity of  faith.  What  is  it  that  unites  in  a  church  if  it  is 
not  faith?  Faith  is  the  bond  of  souls.  When  the 
foundations  of  their  common  faith  are  attacked,  the 
differences  existing  between  Christian  churches  upon 
special  questions,  or  the  diversities  of  their  organization 
or  government,  become  secondary  interests.  It  is  from 
a  common  peril  that  they  have  to  defend  themselves, 
or  they  must  be  content  to  see  dried  up  the  common 
source  from  which  they  all  derive  sustenance  and  life.1 " 
In  the  Meditation  already  published,  M.  Guizot  dis- 
cusses the  essence  of  Christianity,  creation,  revelation, 
inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  God  according  to  the 
Biblical  account,  and  Jesus  according  to  the  Gospel  nar- 

1  Meditations  on  the  Essence  of  Christianity.     Preface,  pp.  6-10. 


418  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

rative.  In  order  to  complete  his  work,  the  author  de- 
signs to  write  three  more  parts.  In  the  second,  he  will 
examine  the  authenticity  of  the  Scriptures,  the  primary 
causes  of  the  foundation  of  Christianity,  the  great  reli- 
gious crisis  in  the  sixteenth  century  which  divided  the 
Church  and  Europe  between  Roman  Catholicism  and 
Protestantism,  and  finally  those  different  anti-Christian 
crises  which  at  different  periods  and  in  different  coun- 
tries have  set  in  question  and  imperiled  Christianity 
itself,  but  which  dangers  it  has  ever  surmounted. 

The  third  Meditation  will  be  a  survey  of  the  present 
internal  and  external  condition  of  the  Christian  religion. 
The  regeneration  of  the  Koman  Catholic  and  Protestant 
churches  at  the  commencement  of  the  nineteenth  cen- 
tury will  be  exhibited.  The  author  will  then  describe 
the  impulse  imparted  by  the  Spiritualistic  Philosophy, 
and  the  opposition  it  met  with  in  Materialism,  Panthe- 
ism, and  Skepticism.  He  will  conclude  by  exposing  the 
fundamental  error  of  these  systems  as  the  avowed  and 
active  enemies  of  Christianity.  In  the  fourth  series 
there  will  be  a  characterization  of  the  future  destiny  of 
the  Christian  religion,  and  an  indication  of  the  course 
by  which  it  is  called  upon  to  conquer  completely  the 
earth  and  then  to  sway  it  morally.  M.  Guizot,  having 
spent  his  life  in  political  excitement,  now  resolves  to 
occupy  his  remaining  years  in  aiding  the  cause  of  reli- 
gion. "  I  have  passed,"  says  he,  "  thirty-five  years  of 
my  life  in  struggling,  on  a  bustling  arena,  for  the  estab- 
lishment of  political  liberty,  and  the  maintenance  of 
order  as  established  by  law.  I  have  learned,  in  the 
labors  and  trials  of  this  struggle,  the  real  worth  of 
Christian  faith  and  of  Christian  liberty.  God  permits 
me,  in  the  repose  of  my  retreat,  to  consecrate  to  theii 
cause  what  remains  to  me  of  life  and  of  strength.     It 


THE    PROTESTANT    CONFERENCES.  419 

is  the  most  salutary  favor  and  the  greatest  honor  that 
I  can  receive  from  his  goodness." 

We  may  now  ask,  What  is  the  fruit  of  the  labors  of 
MM.  de  Pressense,  Guizot,  and  their  heroic  coadjutors  ? 
Is  the  spirit  of  French  Protestantism  against  them,  and 
are  the  majority  of  the  clergy  yielding  to  the  insinuat- 
ing arguments  of  the  skeptical  school  \    These  questions 
are  satisfactorily  answered  by  the  recent  action  of  the 
French  Protestant  Conferences.      The  Conferences  are 
not  composed  of  members  formally  admitted,  but  of 
the  pastors  and  elders  who  attend  the  spring  anniver 
saries,  and  choose  to  participate  in  them.     The  Genera] 
Conference  includes  all  denominations  of  Protestants ; 
the   special,  only  the  ministers  of  the   Lutheran  and 
Reformed  churches  who  constitute   together   the   Na- 
tional  Protestant  Church.     Whatever  action   may  be 
adopted  by  either  body  is  a  safe  index  of  the  sentiment 
pervading   the   entire   mass   of  French   Protestantism. 
In  the  General  Conference  which  convened  in  Paris  in 
the  spring  of  1863,  there  was  a  violent  debate  between 
the   Rationalistic   and    Evangelical    members.     M.    de 
Pressense  presided.     Pastor  Bersier  made  a  remarkable 
speech,  in  which  he  declared  that  true  science,  light, 
liberty,  and  progress   are  on  the  side  of  earnest  faith 
in  revelation,  the  atonement,  and  the  other  great   doc- 
trines of  Christian   truth.     At  the   conclusion  of  the 
discussion,  the   following   protest   was   carried   by  an 
overwhelming  majority : 

"  The  Conference,  considering  that  the  faithful  may 
be  troubled  by  systems  of  the  present  day,  attacking 
the  very  basis  of  Christianity  and  the  Church ;  that 
these  negations  are  produced  in  the  name  of  science, 
and  given  as  the  definitive  results  of  the  elaboration  of 
modern    thought, — protests  in    the  name  of  Christian 


42  0  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

faith,  of  Christian  conscience,  of  Christian  experience, 
of  Christian  science,  against  every  doctrine  which  tends 
to  overturn  the  existence  of  supernatural  order,  of  the 
divine  authority  of  the  Scriptures,  of  the  divinity  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  all  that  touches  the  very  essence  of 
Christianity  ;  such  as  it  has  been  professed  in  all  times, 
by  all  churches,  marked  with  the  seal  of  religious 
power  and  faithfulness.  The  Conference  invites  the 
faithful  to  beware  of  these  systems  of  science,  a  thou- 
sand times  contradicted  by  the  incessant  transforma- 
tions of  the  human  mind ;  and  exhorts  the  different 
churches  to  make  efforts  and  sacrifices  to  favor  the  de- 
velopment and  progress  of  Christian  science." 

The  Rationalists  hoped  that  by  spending  a  year  in 
the  industrious  promulgation  of  their  opinions,  they 
would  gain  some  official  recognition  or  power  in  the 
ensuing  Conference.  Accordingly,  when  the  General 
Conference  of  1864  convened,  they  demanded  the  pas- 
sage of  a  resolution  by  which  ministers  would  be  freed 
from  all  authority,  and  permitted  to  preach  any  doc- 
trine, no  doctrine,  or  a  denial  of  all  Christianity,  as  they 
might  choose.  The  debate  was  very  animated,  and 
lasted  three  days.  But  the  result  was  all  that  the  most 
sanguine  friends  of  orthodoxy  could  desire.  The  Con- 
ference adopted  the  following  declaration,  by  a  large 
majority : 

"  Whereas,  For  some  years,  pastors  and  professors  of 
theology  have  expressed  opinions  which  affect  not  only 
the  divine  authority  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  but  also 
the  most  elementary  doctrines  of  Christianity ;  the 
Conferences  declare  that  it  is  an  abuse  of  power  and  a 
spiritual  tyranny  for  a  minister  of  Jesus  Christ  to  take 
advantage  of  his  position  to  propagate  directly  or  in- 
directly, ideas  contrary  to  the  fundamental  doctrines  of 


M.    GUIZOTS    DECLARATION.  421 

Christianity,  such  as  the  authority  of  the  Bible,  the 
divinity  and  redemption  of  Jesus  Christ,  which  are  con- 
tained in  all  the  Protestant  liturgies." 

M.  Guizot,  who  is  an  elder  in  the  Reformed  church, 
took  a  prominent  part  in  the  session  of  the  special  Con- 
ference in  1864.  He  introduced  a  declaration  of  prin- 
ciples, the  character  of  which  may  be  judged  by  the 
following  extract :  "  We  have  full  faith,  1st.  In  the 
supernatural  power  of  God  in  the  government  of  the 
world,  and  especially  in  the  establishment  of  the  Chris- 
tian religion ;  2d.  In  the  divine  and  supernatural  in- 
spiration of  the  Holy  Books,  as  well  as  in  their  sover- 
eign authority  in  religious  matters ;  2>d.  In  the  eternal 
divinity  and  miraculous  birth  as  well  as  in  the  resur- 
rection of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  God-man,  Saviour,  and 
Redeemer  of  men.  We  are  convinced  that  these  articles 
of  the  Christian  religion  are  also  those  of  the  Reformed 
church,  which  has  plainly  acknowledged  them."  "  Gen- 
tlemen," said  he,  in  support  of  his  proposition,  "  I  call 
your  attention  to  one  important  fact.  Look  around 
you  !  The  attacks  against  the  bases  of  Christianity  are 
seen  everywhere,  in  Germany,  Switzerland,  Holland, 
England,  and  France.  I  fear  nothing,  provided  ag- 
gression meets  with  resistance.  ...  I  have  entire 
confidence  in  the  cause  of  Christianity.  But  man  is 
God's  workman  ;  it  is  by  our  faith  and  labor  that  the 
Christian  religion  must  be  defended.  Gentlemen,  we 
have  before  us  a  responsible  position  and  great  duties. 
We  are  the  vanguard  of  all  Christianity ;  we  have  be 
hind  us  all  the  Christian  communions.  Let  us  show 
ourselves  equal  to  this  great  task,  and  firmly  resolve  to 
accomplish  it." 

The  debate  resulted  in  the  adoption  of  the  declara- 
tion by  a  vote  of  one  hundred  and  forty-one  against 
twentv-three. 


422  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

Ill  addition  to  these  proofs  of  the  orthodoxy  of 
French  Protestantism,  there  is  another  of  different  char- 
acter but  of  not  less  significance.  We  mean  the  success- 
ful working  of  the  evangelizing  agencies  lately  inaugu- 
rated in  France.  Forty  years  ago,  A.  Monod  was  in  the 
midst  of  his  small  Sunday  School  in  Paris.  The  gov- 
ernment was  in  the  hands  of  the  Jesuits,  and  Protest- 
antism had  neither  the  political  power  nor  spiritual 
disposition  to  labor  for  the  conversion  of  Romanists.  As 
M.  Grandpierre  has  graphically  said :  "  From  1810  to 
1815  you  could  count  on  your  five  fingers  those  Protest- 
ant French  pastors  who  preached  faithfully  and  zeal- 
ously the  true  principles  of  Christianity." 

But  improvement  began,  and  between  1820  and 
1830  several  important  religious  societies  were  organ- 
ized in  Paris.  The  Methodist  and  Free  Churches  vied 
with  the  two  National  Protestant  Churches  in  efforts 
for  the  conversion  of  the  masses.  In  1830,  the  Free 
Church  possessed  but  one  place  of  worship,  but  it  now 
has  a  complete  establishment  for  evangelizing  purposes 
in  almost  every  quartier  of  the  great  metropolis.  In 
the  same  year  there  were  but  six  Protestant  pastors  and 
five  Churches ;  but  in  1857  there  were  thirty-nine  pastors 
and  fifty-one  sanctuaries.  Including  the  whole  of  France, 
there  are,  under  Protestant  jurisdiction,  about  one  thou- 
sand pastors,  from  fifteen  to  sixteen  hundred  churches, 
and  from  seventeen  to  eighteen  hundred  elementary 
schools.  The  official  census  previous  to  1857  gives  the 
total  number  of  Protestants  in  Paris  as  thirteen  thousand  ; 
and  seven  hundred  and  seventy  thousand  throughout 
the  country.  M.  Grandpierre  thinks  these  numbers  are 
really  double ;  for  in  Paris  alone  two  pastors  are  omit- 
ted, and  if  they  are  left  out  what  must  be  expected  of 
the  members  under  them?     During  1862  twenty  new 


EVANGELIZING    AGENCIES.  423 

Protestant  Churches  were  opened  and  consecrated  to 
the  worship  of  God.  Twenty-five  years  ago  there  was 
but  one  Protestant  bookstore  in  Paris,  and  it  was  threat- 
ened from  time  to  time  with  bankruptcy.  Now  there 
are  four,  all  of  which  are  in  a  flourishing  condition. 
There  is  a  Sunday  School  in  nearly  every  Protestant 
Church  of  the  Empire. 

Almost  every  year  some  new  society  is  organized, 
having  for  its  avowed  object  the  conversion  of  souls 
and  the    relief  of  the  suffering.     Those  now  in   pros- 
perous  existence   will    compare   favorably   with    simi- 
lar institutions  in  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 
We    mention    the    most   prominent:   The   French  and 
Foreign    Bible    Society,  which  sold  eighty-eight  thou- 
sand   copies    of   the    Bible   in    1862 ;    the    Protestant 
Bible  Society ;  the  Tract  Society ;  the  Paris  Missionary 
Society ;  the  Primary  School  Society  and  the  Protestant 
Sou   Society.      Each  of  these  has  its  well-defined  field 
of    labor,    one    aiming  to   arouse   slumbering   Protest- 
ants, another  to  seek   out  wandering  Protestants,  and 
a  third  to  educate  homeless   children.     The   Evangel- 
ical  Society    of   France,    whose    secretaryship    M.    de 
Pressense  has  held  for  thirty  years,  founded  during  the 
year  1862  nine  new   Churches ;  created  six  additional 
centres  of  evangelization  ;  aided  twenty  churches  ;  sup- 
ported two  Normal  Schools ;  organized   many  others ; 
cultivated  two  of  the  faubourgs  of  Paris ;  and  expended 
three  millions  five  hundred  and  eighty  thousand  francs 
for  the  purposes  of  evangelization.     In  addition  to  these 
societies,  there  are  Orphan  institutions,  Schools,  Asylums 
for  the   unprotected,  destitute,  fallen,  sick,  and  infirm ; 
some  associations  for  the  aid  of  those  near  at  hand,  and 
others  for  those  at  a  distance.  The  press  has  been  active  in 
the  same  great  cause.  Weekly  and  monthly  journals  have 


424  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

been  multiplied,  and  carry  the  good  news  of  God  not 
only  through  France  but  into  all  parts  of  the  Continent. 
The  theological  schools  are  in  a  flourishing  condition, 
and  evangelical  professors  are  everywhere  in  the  major, 
ity.  Of  the  seven  teachers  at  Montauban,  five  are  out- 
spoken adherents  of  orthodoxy.  The  inability  of  M. 
Reville  to  be  elected  to  a  chair  in  that  institution  indi- 
cates the  religious  status  of  those  in  authority  of  it. 

Neander  said  one  day  to  M.  de  Pressense,  "This 
period  in  which  we  live  is  indeed  a  critical  one.  It  is 
to  be  a  dismal  abyss  or  a  rosy  morning  light.  But,  de- 
pend upon  it,  it  is  going  to  be  whatever  we  have  a  mind 
to  make  it."  The  Evangelical  Protestant  clergy  of 
France  "  have  a  mind "  to  do  a  good  and  permanent 
work.  We  do  not  apprehend  an  unfavorable  issue  from 
the  present  conflict,  but  that  the  prayers,  proscription, 
and  exile  of  eight  hundred  thousand  Huguenots  will 
yet  reap  their  appropriate  harvest,  and  that  the  Revoca- 
tion of  the  Edict  of  Nantes  will  be  avenged  by  the  pure 
faith  and  permanent  triumphs  of  Protestantism. 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

SWITZERLAND:    ORTHODOXY    IN    GENEVA,    AND    THE    NEW 
SPECULATIVE  RATIONALISM  IN    ZURICH. 

Switzerland  has  failed  to  retain  the  influence  over 
the  theological  thought  of  Europe  enjoyed  by  her  in 
the  days  of  Zwinglius  and  Calvin.  Impressions,  instead 
of  being  given,  have  of  late  only  been  received.  France 
and  Germany  have  contributed  their  respective  phases 
of  theology,  the  French  Cantons  adopting  the  opinions 
emanating  from  the  former  country,  and  the  German 
those  from  the  latter.  We  must  not  therefore  expect  to 
find  a  very  wide  difference  either  respecting  theology 
or  practical  religion  between  the  Swiss  and  their  two 
influential  neighbors. 

When  the  Skepticism  of  Voltaire  and  his  disciples 
was  penetrating  the  French  mind  the  Reformed  Church 
of  Switzerland  did  not  long  remain .  unaffected  by  it. 
While  that  crafty  man  was  enjoying  his  romantic  retreat 
at  Ferney,  he  was  visited  and  even  flattered  by  persons 
who  had  taken  upon  themselves  the  vows  of  the  Chris- 
tian ministry.  The  pastors  of  Geneva  were  regarded  by 
the  Encyclopaedists  as  sympathizers  and  co-laborers  in 
overthrowing  the  distinctive  doctrines  of  the  Gospel. 
In  the  early  part  of  the  nineteenth  century  there  was 
in  Switzerland,  as  in  Germany,  a  strife  between  the  old 
confessional  faith  and  Rationalism.     But   in  Germany 


426  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Reason  attacked  the  contents  of  the  Scriptures,  while 
in  Switzerland  the  attempt  was  made  to  reduce  all  re- 
vealed truth  to  a  system  of  natural  religion.  Rationalism 
in  the  Swiss  Church  was  Arianism  and  Socinianisin  re- 
vived.1 It  swept  away  the  strong  Calvinism  of  the  old 
Genevan  theology.  The  clergy  were  little  better  than 
the  English  Deists.  D'Alembert  says,  "  All  the  reli- 
gion that  many  of  the  ministers  of  Geneva  have  is  a 
complete  Socinianisin,  rejecting  everything  called  mys- 
tery, and  supposing  that  the  first  principle  of  a  true 
religion  is  to  propose  nothing  to  be  received  as  a  matter 
of  faith  which  strikes  against  reason."  Rousseau  de- 
clares  that  those  who  filled  the  pulpits  of  that  venerable 
city  had  no  answer  to  the  question,  "Is  Christ  divine  ?" 
Theological  training  was  neglected.  The  professors, 
like  the  pastors,  committed  themselves  to  an  undis- 
guised system  of  Rationalistic  Unitarianism.  M.  Bost, 
writing  in  1825,  says  that,  "for  more  than  thirty  years 
the  ministers  who  have  gone  out  of  our  schools  of 
theology,  to  serve  either  the  churches  of  our  own  land 
or  those  of  France  and  other  foreign  countries,  have  not 
received  one  single  lecture  on  the  truths  which  exclu- 
sively  belong  to  revelation,  such  as  the  redemption  of 
mankind  by  the  death  of  Christ,  the  justification  of  the 
Saviour  by  faith,  the  corruption  of  our  nature,  the  di- 
vinity of  our  Saviour,  &c.  In  theology  we  were  taught 
nothing  but  what  are  called  the  dogmas  of  natural  reli- 
gion. The  extent  to  which  this  practical  incredulity 
was  carried  is  clear  from  the  fact,  elsewhere  unheard  of, 
I  suspect,  in  the  annals  of  the  Protestant  churches, 
that,  excepting  for  a  lecture  in  the  Hebrew  language, 
when  the  Bible  was  used  simply  as  a  Hebrew  book,  and 

■  Hagenbach,  Kirchengeschichte  d.  18.  und  19.  Jahrhittiderts,  vol.  ii., 
p.  416. 


ALA  DAME    DE    KRUDENER.  427 

not  for  anything  it  contained,  the  word  of  God  was 
never  used  throughout  our  course ;  in  particular,  the  New 
Testament  never  appeared,  either  as  a  language-book  or 
for  any  other  purpose  ;  there  was  no  need  of  the  New 
Testament,  whatever,  in  order  to  complete  our  four 
years'  course  in  theology  ;  in  other  words,  that  book, 
especially  in  the  original,  was  not  at  all  among  the 
number  of  books  required  in  order  to  accomplish  the 
career  of  our  studies  for  the  sacred  ministry."  ' 

The  Vgn&rable  Coinpagnie,  comprising  the  clergymen 
and  theological  professors  of  Geneva,  went  so  far,  in 
1817,  as  to  impose  upon  all  candidates  for  ordination  to 
the  ministry,  the  obligation  not  to  preach  on  the  two 
natures  of  Christ,  original  sin,  predestination,  and  other 
received  doctrines  of  their  confession.  As  might  be 
expected,  practical  piety  was  thrown  into  the  back- 
ground. Children  were  not  instructed  in  the  Scriptures, 
and  the  churches  were  attended  by  small  congregations, 
who  were  favored  with  no  better  gospel  than  the  com- 
bined opinions  of  Voltaire  and  the  German  Rational- 
ists. There  were  here  and  there  loud  protests  against 
this  apostasy.  The  Canton  Vaud  was  benefited  by  the 
labors  of  that  excellent  woman,  Madame  de  Krudener, 
who  exchanged  a  life  of  Parisian  gayety  and  affluence 
for  humble  labors  among  the  poor  and  uninstructed 
Swiss.  She  loved  to  sit  upon  a  wooden  bench  and 
teach  all  who  came  to  her  the  truths  of  the  Bible  and 
the  necessity  of  a  regenerated  heart.  Her  influence  was 
powerful  in  Geneva  after  the  commencement  of  the 
evangelical  movement.  Another  counteracting  agency 
was  a  sect  of  Methodists,  nicknamed  the  "  Momiers," 
who  had  gone  thither  from  England,  and  were  rebuking 
the  prevalent  Rationalism  by  every  available  means.2 

1  Alexander,  Switzerland  and  the  Swiss  Churches,  p.  194. 

1  Kurtz,  Church  History,  vol.  ii.,  p.  334. 
29 


428  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

From  the  outset  Geneva  had  been  the  centre  of  the 
great  religious  decline.  The  Theological  Academy  found- 
ed by  Calvin  had  become  the  nursery  of  as  injurious  er- 
rors as  had  emanated  from  Halle  in  the  period  of  Wolfs 
triumphant  career.  Its  chairs  were  occupied  by  the  very 
teachers  described  by  M.  Bost,  men  in  every  respect  un 
worthy  to  prepare  students  for  the  Christian  pulpit.  But, 
by  the  providence  of  Him  who  watches  every  juncture 
with  a  Father's  care,  a  new  influence  was  brought  to 
bear  upon  the  Academy,  and  through  it  upon  the  whole 
Protestant  Church  of  Switzerland.  Robert  Haldane, 
having  sold  his  large  estate  in  Scotland,  directed  his 
attention  to  the  moral  dearth  at  Geneva  by  endeavor- 
ing to  imbue  the  students  with  his  own  evangelical 
opinions  and  earnest  spirit.  His  labors  were  eminently 
successful.  Many  of  the  young  men  became  converted, 
and  for  the  first  time  had  a  clear  conception  of  the 
great  work  before  them.  It  was  through  Haldane  that 
Merle  d'Aubigne,  Adolphe  Monod,  Malan,  and  others 
of  their  school,  were  inspired  with  the  spirit  of  the 
Gospel.  Switzerland  can  never  be  too  grateful  to  God 
for  sending  such  a  man  at  that  important  crisis. 

The  immediate  issue  of  this  awakening  was  the  or- 
ganization of  the  Evangelical  Dissenting  Church.  All 
who  had  grown  dissatisfied  with  the  formalism  and 
Rationalism  of  the  National  Church  came  to  the  new 
fold  and  co-operated  in  the  work  of  reformation.  A 
school  of  theology,  established  in  Geneva,  was  visited 
by  students  who  came  seeking  an  education  that  might 
enable  them  to  relieve  the  moral  wants  of  the  masses. 
Gaussen,  the  author  of  La  Theopneustie,  was  one  of  the 
professors.  The  new  Church  soon  found  in  him  its 
leader.  He  has  recently  died,  but  his  long  life  has  been 
of  valuable  service  to  the  kingdom  of  Christ.     Besides 


ALEXANDRE    R0D0LPHE    VLNET.  429 

reviving  and  reorganizing  the  Sunday  School  system  in 
Geneva,  and  personally  superintending  the  religious  in- 
struction of  the  children,  for  whom  he  wrote  his  inim- 
itable CafccM-sms,  he  became  the  author  of  many  theo- 
logical works  adapted  to  the  wants  of  clergy  and  laity. 
In  company  with  a  few  friends,  he  published  the  popu- 
lar Swiss  version  of  the  New  Testament.  It  occasioned 
him  real  joy  when  he  witnessed  late  in  life  the  improve- 
ment of  the  National  Church  of  Switzerland.  But  it 
must  be  confessed  that  the  parent  has  yet  much  to  learn 
and  accomplish  before  reaching  the  high  evangelical 
status  now  occupied  by  the  earnest  daughter. 

The  name  of  Vinet  belongs  to  the  whole  of  Protest- 
ant Europe,  and  is  identified  with  the  revival  of  religious 
sentiment  in  Switzerland,  Germany,  Holland,  and  France. 
His  excellent  writings  have  familiarized  him  to  the  theo- 
logical readers  of  Great  Britain  and  the  United  States. 
The  separation  of  Church  and  State  was  one  of  the  lead- 
ing aims  of  his  life,  and  he  eloquently  contended  for  it 
whenever  occasion  offered.  In  1837  he  accepted  the  invita- 
tion of  the  government  of  his  native  canton  to  take  charge 
of  the  professorship  of  Theology  in  the  Seminary  in 
Lausanne.  Already  profoundly  impressed  with  the  opin- 
ions of  Pascal,  he  admired  the  more  evangelical  portion 
of  Schleiermacher's  theology.  Combining  these,  he 
originated  the  only  native  theological  system  which 
Switzerland  has  produced  since  Calvin's  day.1  In  all 
his  works  he  manifests  profound  thought  and  erudition. 
His  Homiletics  and  Pastoral  Theology  have  already  be- 
come text-books  in  many  theological  seminaries. 

The  spirit  now  dominant  at  Geneva  clearly  indicates 
the  success  of  the  late  efforts  toward  reform.  The  con- 
gregations have  largely  increased  ;  various  humanitarian 

1  Farrar,  Critical  History  of  Free  Thought,  p.  444. 


430  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

enterprises  have  been  vigorously  prosecuted  ;  societies 
for  the  circulation  of  religious  knowledge  have  been 
founded ;  and  the  laity  have  come  to  the  assistance  of 
the  clergy  in  labors  for  the  social  and  moral  elevation 
of  the  masses.  For  a  quarter  of  a  century  young  mer 
have  been  judiciously  trained  in  theology,  and  Switzer- 
land is  now  supplying  many  prominent  French  pulpits 
with  her  graduates. 

The  present  sojourner  in  Geneva  finds  but  few  rem- 
nants of  that  skeptical  preaching  and  general  religious 
indifference  so  lamentably  prevalent  before  the  rise  of 
the  Evangelical  Dissenting  Church.  M.  Levalois,  who 
is  an  avowed  skeptic,  looks  upon  a  very  different  scene 
from  that  which  once  so  delighted  Rousseau.  Coming 
from  the  source  they  do,  his  words  are  a  valuable  testi- 
mony to  the  religious  growth  of  the  mother-city  of 
French  Protestantism.  "  I  now  come,"  says  this  travel- 
er, "  to  the  essential  characteristics  of  Geneva.  Before 
being  literary  and  liberal,  the  Genevan  is  Christian.  In 
Geneva  the  free-thinking  stranger  is  advised  of  Chris- 
tianity. In  the  souls  of  men,  instead  of  meeting  with 
no  resistance,  no  solidity, — as,  for  instance,  among  the 
greater  part  of  our  Parisian  Catholics, — instead  of  find- 
ing himself  in  the  face  of  a  creed  mechanically  repeated, 
of  a  memory  and  not  of  a  conscience, — you  feel  your- 
self in  contact  with  an  individual  who  will  believe,  who 
can  believe,  who  is  in  full  possession  of  the  why  of  his 
belief.  Nothing  in  the  world  is  to  me  so  sacred  as  sin- 
cerity in  intelligent  faith.  Just  as  I  despise  certain  time- 
serving Catholics,  who  are  converted  because  they  dread 
socialism,  or  because  they  dread  the  Empire,  so  much  do 
I  respect  the  man  who  freely  attaches  himself  to  the 
Gospel,  devotes  himself  to  Christ,  and  prays  to  Him. 
Does  this  imply  that  I  return  from  Geneva  a  Protest- 


LECTURES    IN    GENEVA.  431 

ant  ?  No ;  I  have  not  been  converted,  but,  I  repeat, 
advised.  I  have  seen  Christianity  working,  not  only  in 
churches,  but,  which  is  much  more  edifying,  in  indi- 
viduals. Yes,  I  have  seen  it  in  turns  the  inspirer  of 
language,  the  spring  of  actions,  the  spur  and  the  dis- 
cipline, rule  and  support  of  the  future,  impregnating,  so 
to  speak,  the  flesh  and  the  spirit.  Such  a  spectacle  ex- 
cites one  to  reflection.  We  have  been  in  too  great 
haste  to  exclaim,  Christianity  is  dead  !  An  hour's  con- 
versation with  two  or  three  Genevese,  suffices  to  con- 
vince us  that  if  Christianity  is  dead  it  is  not  yet 
buried."  1 

The  course  of  lectures  delivered  in  the  Theological 
Academy  of  Geneva  in  the  winter  of  1862-63,  may  be 
taken  as  an  illustration  of  the  character  of  the  in- 
struction imparted  in  that  influential  institution.  M. 
Secretan  delivered  learned  lectures  on  "  Theism."  He 
showed  that  the  objections  which  can  be  raised,  on  the 
ground  of  natural  religion,  against  the  existence  and 
personality  of  God,  lose  all  their  force  on  Chris- 
tian ground ;  therefore  Hegelianism  has  no  base.  M. 
Naville,  in  his  course  on  "  Spiritualism,"  summoned  the 
resources  of  his  learning  and  genius  to  aid  him  in  his 
heroic  combat  with  every  form  of  current  materialism. 
Pastor  Coulin  lectured  on  "  Christian  Works."  It  was 
an  eloquent  appeal  for  renewed  Christian  activity. 
MM.  Bungener,  Bret,  and  Rorich  lectured  on  "  Christian 
Life ; "  M.  Gaberel  on  the  "  Part  taken  by  Geneva  at  the 
time  of  the  Reformation ; "  and  also  on  the  "  Present 
Literary  and  Religious  state  of  Germany ; "  M.  Archi 
nard  on  the  "  Ancient  Religious  Edifices  of  Switzer- 
land ; "  M.  Aug.  Bost  on  the  "  First  Fifteen  Centuries 
of  the  History  of  Mankind ; "  and  M.  De  Gasparin  on 

1  L1  Opinion  Rationale,  1863. 


i'3'2  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  "  Family  Life,  its  Organization  and  Duties."  In  ad- 
dition to  these,  there  were  lectures  on  detached  subjects, 
such  as  religious  prejudices,  the  study  of  the  Bible  by 
simple-hearted  believers,  drunkenness,  the  religious  edu- 
cation of  children,  the  instruction  of  catechumens,  the 
dissipation  of  cities,  and  the  duty  of  evangelization.1 

Of  the  German  cantons,  Basle  has  been  the  only 
one  which  has  successfully  resisted  the  encroachments 
of  Rationalism.  The  University  has  fully  recovered 
from  the  influence  of  De  Wette,  and  the  professors  now 
stand  in  the  front  rank  of  evangelical  thinkers.  The 
Mission  House  has  been  a  highly  useful  agency. 
Though  not  a  half-century  old,  it  has  already  trained 
four  hundred  missionaries,  nearly  three  hundred  of 
whom  are  still  living  and  actively  engaged  in  evangel- 
izing the  dark  places  of  the  earth.  The  people  are  un- 
willing to  permit  any  minister  to  occupy  one  of  their 
pulpits  whom  they  have  reason  to  suspect  of  skeptical 
opinions.  The  infidel  Rumpf  was  excluded  in  1858 
from  the  list  of  candidates  for  the  ministry,  and  all  his 
subsequent  efforts  for  restoration  have  failed  in  the 
chief  council.  A  similar  occurrence  took  place  in  Berne 
in  1847,  upon  the  calling  of  Zeller  to  the  theological 
professorship. 

We  now  turn  to  a  less  evangelical  part  of  Switzer- 
land. Zurich  is  one  of  the  acknowledged  centres  of 
European  Rationalism.  Its  spiritual  decline  has  been 
rapid  during  the  last  twenty-five  years.  In  1839, 
Strauss,  the  author  of  the  Life  of  Jesus,  was  invited  by 
the  chief  council  to  take  a  theological  chair  in  the  semi- 
nary. But  the  people  arising  as  one  man  against  the 
measure,  the  appointment  failed,  the  council  was  over- 
thrown by  a  popular  revolution,  and  the  city  still  pays 

1  Christian  WorTc,  Aug.,  1863. 


ELECTION    IN   USTER.  433 

a  pension  to  the  disappointed  aspirant.     But  in  lament 
able  contrast  with  that  event  is  one  of  more  recent  oc- 
currence.    As  late  as  1864,  when  the  little  town  of 
Uster  was  about  to  elect  a  pastor,  the  candidate  declared 
himself  "  a  friend  of  progress  and  light."     Some   reli- 
gious men,  unwilling  to  see  their  children  placed  under 
the  instruction  of  a  skeptic,  took  upon  themselves  the 
task   of  showing  in  what   the   "  progress "   consisted. 
They  accordingly  published   a  notice    to   their  fellow 
citizens  in  which  they  set  forth  the  avowed  opinions  of 
their  candidate.     The  document  asserted  that  he   be- 
lieved the  Bible  to  be  a  tissue  of  fictions  and  fables ; 
Jesus  a  sinful  man  like  others,  neither  risen  from  the 
dead,  nor  sitting  in  the  glory  of  his  Father ;  no  one 
can  assert  with  positiveness  a  life  beyond  the  grave; 
and   the   opinion   that  we  are   reconciled   to  God   by 
Jesus  Christ,  merely  a  superstition  and   a  day-dream. 
The  authors  of  the  circular  besought  the  ecclesiastical 
council   to   deliver   them  and   their  children  from  the 
promulgation  of  such  doctrines,  and  further  reminded 
them  that  every  pastor  on  entering  upon  his  functions 
must  swear  to  preach  faithfully  the  word  of  God,  both 
law  and   gospel,  according   to   the   fundamental   prin- 
ciples of  the  evangelical  Reformed  church.     The  council 
took  no  notice  of  the  remonstrance,  though  the  candi- 
date did  not  deny  the   charges.     He  was   elected   by 
eight  hundred  and  sixty -five  votes  against  one  hundred 
and  forty -five.     In  the  church,  where  the   result  was 
proclaimed,  the  acclamations  were  so  loud  that  they 
"  shook  the  windows."      In  the  evening  there  was  a 
serenade,  accompanied  by  rockets  and  blue  lights.1 

The  only  representative  of  evangelical  doctrines  in 
the  theological  faculty  of  Zurich  is  a  tutor,  placed  there 

1  Hemaine  Religieuse.     Geneva:  1864. 


434  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

and  supported  by  a  private  society.  The  most  effective 
means  by  which  Rationalism  emanates  from  that  city  is 
periodical  literature.  The  leading  publications  are, 
The  Church  of  the  Present,  and  Voices  of  the  Times, 
The  latter  journal  was  commenced  in  1859.  Its  editor, 
Lang,  is  a  frequent  contributor  to  prominent  Rational- 
istic serials  of  Germany,  particularly  the  Protestant 
Church  Gazette  of  Berlin.  He  has  published,  besides 
other  works,  A  System  of  Doctrine,  and  A  March 
through  the  Christian  World.  Professor  Biedermann, 
an  instructor  in  Zurich,  has  embodied  his  skeptical 
opinions  in  a  Manual  of  Christian  Doctrine,  for  the  use 
of  the  youth  in  Swiss  colleges.  Dr.  Volckmar,  another 
theological  professor  of  the  same  city,  has  advanced  in 
his  numerous  works  on  primitive  Christianity,  opinions 
even  more  radical  than  those  of  Strauss  or  the  Tubingen 
School.  All  those  men  are  members,  in  good  standing, 
of  the  Reformed  church  of  Switzerland.1 

The  Rationalistic  works  in  question  are  studiously 
adapted  to  the  common  mind.  They  contain  a  complete 
system,  which  we  term  the  New  Speculative  Rational, 
ism.  It  declares  a  strong  attachment  to  Protestantism, 
and  professes  to  cultivate  a  much  higher  development 
of  Christian  life  than  was  aimed  at  by  its  German  pred- 
ecessor. Like  the  Groningen  school  of  Holland,  it  lays 
stress  on  the  character  of  Christ.  It  proposes  to  estab- 
lish a  new  church,  which  shall  have  a  wider  door  for 
the  entrance  of  Protestant  Christians  than  that  opened 
by  the  confessions.  The  present  fold  is  entirely  too 
small ;  the  new  Rationalism  would  organize  one  of 
colossal  popular  dimensions.  "  Our  church,"  say  these 
teachers  of  Zurich,  "  is  truth  and  morality.     Whoever 

1  Riggenbach,   Der  Heutige  Rationalismus  lesonders  in  der  Deutsehen 
Sehweitz.     Basel:  1862. 


SWISS    RATIONALISTS.  435 

thinks  upon  these  things  and  strives  for  them  shall  find 
a  place  in  it."  Their  opinions  are  the  direct  result  of 
the  Hegelian  philosophy  applied  speculatively  to  the 
obsolete,  destructive  Rationalism  of  Germany. 

The  Holt  Scriptures.  Protestantism  mistakes 
itself  in  treating  the  Bible  as  authority.  Though  the 
Scriptures  declare  our  relations  to  God,  they  should  not 
escape  our  free  criticism  and  occasional  censure.  Every 
man  has  a  right  to  interpret  them  for  himself,  and  on 
his  individual  understanding  of  their  contents  he  should 
feel  bound  to  act.  No  man  has  a  right  to  impose  his 
opinion  upon  another,  nor  has  any  church  a  guarantee 
for  obliging  its  members  to  subscribe  to  a  fixed  creed. 
All  deductions  from  the  positive  statements  of  the 
Scriptures  are  mere  human  opinions,  and  should  only 
receive  the  credit  due  to  them  as  such.  What  are  con 
fessions  but  human  opinions  ? 

Christ.  Strauss  was  wrong  in  taking  his  cold  view 
of  Jesus.  There  was  a  real  historical  personage  whom 
we  properly  call  Jesus.  Nothing  is  gained,  but  every- 
thing lost  by  resolving  all  the  statements  of  the  gospels 
into  myths.  It  is  through  Christ  that  salvation  is  at- 
tained, for  Christianity  is  the  reconciliation  of  God  and 
man  as  revealed  to  us  in  the  consciousness  and  life  of 
Christ.  He  is  the  end  of  the  law,  the  second  Adam, 
the  fulfilment  of  prophecy,  the  head  of  a  renovated 
humanity.  In  him  we  find  the  revelation  of  a  new 
religious  principle  in  man,  a  real  unity  with  God,  a 
filial  adoption,  freedom  from  natural  corruption,  th 
pardon  of  sin,  and  victory  over  the  world.  Jesus  be 
came  the  one  man  who  bore  in  himself  the  fullness  ot 
the  godhead. 

Important  concessions  to  Christianity  seem  to  be 
made;    nevertheless    subtle  Pantheism   underlies  their 


436  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

statements.  But  one  of  their  opinions  subverts  every 
thing  they  grant  to  orthodoxy.  Christ  was  not,  ac> 
cording  to  their  view,  the  Messiah  in  the  sense  fore- 
told by  the  prophets  and  preached  by  the  apostles. 
We  must  judge  him  apart  from  all  poetry,  specu 
lation,  and  human  judgment.  The  Christ  of  the  pres- 
ent church  is  the  creation  of  theologians,  not  the 
character  portrayed  by  the  evangelists.  Unfortu- 
nately for  our  correct  view  of  him,  Paul  speculated 
entirely  too  much  upon  his  nature  and  work.  The 
resurrection  of  Christ  never  took  place,  because  there 
was  no  necessity  for  it.  It  was  a  good  thing  for  the 
apostles  to  believe  that  such  an  event  took  place,  for  it 
encouraged  them.  Christ  never  showed  himself  to  any 
one  after  his  death,  and  the  belief  that  he  did  appear 
arose  purely  from  the  excited  nerves,  imaginative  tem- 
perament, and  strong  desire  of  his  followers  to  see  him. 
His  spirit  did  not  die  with  his  body,  but  entered  upon 
another  stage  of  existence. 

Jesus  did  not  work  miracles,  for  he  had  not  the 
power.  He  was  eminently  a  moral  man,  the  very  per 
sonification  of  the  truly  religious  character.  Religion  be- 
came flesh  in  him,  and  he  was  the  exemplification  of  love. 
The  salvation  we  find  through  him  is  by  virtue  of  his 
example  and  inculcation  of  moral  truths.  The  spirit 
of  Christ  still  exists,  but  it  does  not  live  in  a  purely 
personal  relation,  nor  does  it  operate  as  a  personal 
existence.  His  spirit  and  example  are  with  us,  but  he 
is  not  here  himself.  The  good  man  is  favored  with  the 
influence  imparted  to  humanity  by  Christ's  exemplary 
life,  but  he  is  nowhere  actually  present  in  the  world. 

God  and  his  Miracles.  No  miracles,  in  the  ortho- 
dox sense  of  the  term,  have  ever  occurred.  The  scien 
tific  examination  of  the  Scriptures  banishes  them  alto- 


VIEWS    ON    IMMORTALITY.  437 

gether.  Neither  are  miracles  possible,  otherwise  we 
should  see  them  every  day.  They  would  be  acts  of 
arbitrary  authority  ou  God's  part ;  and  if  he  performed 
them  he  would  destroy  the  harmony  and  connection  of 
natural  laws.  Christianity  was  not  introduced  by 
miracles.  It  was  inaugurated,  and  even  originated, 
by  underlying  causes  of  a  purely  natural  character. 
Miracle  is  only  a  creation  of  the  imagination,  and 
should  be  discarded  as  a  human  error. 

The  personality  of  God  is  freely  spoken  of,  but 
his  self-consciousness,  in  the  strictest  sense,  is  not  al- 
lowed. Hence  God  is  really  deprived  by  them  of 
all  plan,  aim,  love,  and  favor.  He  is  a  spiritual  being, 
but  he  is  not  a  spirit.  He  is  spirit,  yet  not  a  real, 
thinking,  self-conscious,  willing  spirit.  He  is  not  a 
personality  or  individuality.  "  A  person,"  these  men 
appear  to  say,  "  must  have  a  place  to  stand  upon,  and 
surely  we  would  not  say  this  of  God  ?  The  fact  is,  we 
grossly  misrepresent  the  great  All-Father.  We  picture 
him  in  our  sensuous  forms,  and  almost  imagine  him  to 
be  like  one  of  ourselves." 

Immortality.  The  Speculative  Rationalists  attach 
less  importance  to  individual  immortality  than  their 
predecessors  conceded.  We  might  infer  this,  however, 
from  the  Hegelian  point  of  view  adopted  by  the  former. 
They  profess  adherence  to  Schleiermacher's  dictum : 
"  In  the  midst  of  the  finite  to  be  one  with  the  infinite, 
and  to  be  eternal  every  moment."  But  they  adhere  to 
the  doctrine  of  "  eternal  life,"  by  which  tenn  they  mean 
an  existence  commencing  and  terminating  with  faith. 
It  is  a  life  of  such  value  that  it  should  be  called  "  eter- 
nal "  life,  although  it  ends  with  our  last  breath  in  this 
world.  It  consists  in  the  attainment  of  the  end  of 
our  existence  and  of  conquest   over  sin.     Thus,  they 


438  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

reduce  the  eternal  life  of  whicli  the  gospel  speaks  to 
a  mere  method  and  duration  of  stay  in  this  world. 
This  life,  with  them,  exhausts  life ;  the  kingdom  of 
God  has  not  an  eternal,  but  a  present  and  temporal  ex- 
istence ;  there  is,  therefore,  no  new  heaven  and  new 
earth. 

Sin.  The  fall  of  man  did  not  take  place.  It  is  an 
absurd  superstition.  Since  the  world  is  but  a  limited 
and  imperfect  representation  of  God,  sin  came  into  it 
immediately  upon  its  origin.  We  err  when  we  look  at 
sin  apart  from  a  correct  conception  of  the  world.  Sin 
has  its  seat  in  the  natural  weakness  of  man,  for  he  is  a 
temporal  being,  and  in  process  of  necessaiy  develop- 
ment from  impure  naturalness  to  reason  and  freedom. 
It  is  the  condition  in  which  man  finds  himself  before 
arriving  at  an  idea  of  what  he  is  or  will  be.  If  it  be 
asked,  "  Why  is  sin  in  the  world  %  "  the  rejoinder  is 
made,  "  Why  is  not  man,  in  the  outset  of  his  existence, 
what  he  is  destined  to  be,  and  why  must  he  stand  in 
need  of  development  ? "  Sin,  in  the  beginning,  was 
natural  imperfection,  but  it  never  becomes  a  work  of 
the  will  until  man  is  developed.  It  is  the  melancholy 
result  of  an  awakened  consciousness.  But,  after  man 
is  once  aroused  to  self-consciousness  and  begins  his 
actual,  sinful  life,  he  never  becomes  a  lost  sinner. 

Faith.  The  gospel  is  not  a  compendium  of  prin- 
ciples. Its  only  value  consists  in  its  description  of  the 
moral  and  religious  character  of  Christ,  and  every  one 
must  derive  from  it  such  opinions  as  seem  most  plaus- 
ible and  reasonable.  But  they  err  who  excogitate  from 
it  those  severe  dogmas  which  express  only  dreams  of 
the  imagination  and  wishes  of  the  religious  spirit. 
Faith  in  the  gospel  is  not  a  condition  of  salvation.  For 
faith  is  the  inner  relation  of  the  spiritual  man  to  God. 


THE    FUTURE    OF    SWITZERLAND.  439 

not  the  acceptance  of  fixed  traditions.  It  is  such  a  feel- 
ing, emotion,  and  relation  as  can  exist  independently 
of  doctrine.  Objective  truth  is  not  the  measure  of  faith, 
and  the  salvation  of  man  is  not  conditioned  by  his 
theoretical  opinions.  The  human  spirit  in  man  is  the 
agent  of  regeneration.  Therefore,  man,  and  not  God,  is 
the  author  of  human  regeneration.  Justification  by 
faith  is  produced  by  seeking  God's  favor,  but  Christ 
has  nothing  at  all  to  do  with  the  matter. 

We  cannot  as  yet  foresee  the  complete  result  of  the 
efforts  of  the  New  Speculative  nationalism  to  propagate 
itself.  German  Switzerland  will  be  influenced  by  Ger- 
many, and  because  of  the  thorough  improvement  already 
inaugurated  in  the  latter  country  no  general  resurrec- 
tion of  skepticism  need  be  feared.  The  evangelical 
professors  at  Basle  are  eagerly  watching  every  new 
movement,  and  we  believe  they  have  sufficient  strength 
to  meet  every  emergency.  Christianity  is  aggressive. 
Sometimes  it  is  obliged  to  halt  and  give  battle.  The 
carnage  may  last  long,  and  the  on-looking  world  may, 
in  its  ignorance,  decide  too  speedily  that  the  day  is  lost. 
But  the  victory  of  error  is  only  temporary.  The  ark  in 
Dagon's  house  was  still  the  ark  of  God.  Since  good  men 
are  a  perpetual  power  to  a  people,  we  may  reasonably 
hop*3  that  the  Swiss  reformers  will  continue  to  animate 
the  citizens  of  all  the  French  and  German  cantons. 
May  the  pulpits  and  theological  chairs  of  Switzerland 
ever  be  filled  with  men  who  can  say  what  Zwinglius 
uttered  one  New  Year's  Day  as  his  first  words  to  the 
assembled  multitude  in  the  cathedral  of  Zurich :  "  To 
Christ,  to  Christ  will  I  lead  you, — to  the  source  of  sal- 
vation. His  word  is  the  only  food  I  wish  to  furnish 
to  your  hearts  and  lives ! " 


CHAPTER    XIX. 

ENGLAND  :    THE   SOIL  PREPARED  FOR  THE  INTRODUCTION 
OF  RATIONALISM. 

The  religious  lesson  taught  by  the  condition  of 
England  during  the  eighteenth  century  is  this :  The 
inevitable  moral  prostration  to  which  skepticism  re- 
duces a  nation,  and  the  utter  incapacity  of  literature 
to  afford  relief.  English  Deism  had  advantages  not 
possessed  by  the  Rationalism  of  Germany.  Some  of  its 
champions  were  men  of  great  political  influence ;  and 
in  no  case  was  there  a  parallel  to  the  abandoned 
Bahrdt.  The  Deists  were  steady  in  the  pursuit  of  their 
game,  for  when  they  struck  a  path  they  never  per- 
mitted themselves  to  be  deflected.  But  the  Ration- 
alists were  ever  turning  into  some  by-road  and  weak- 
ening their  energies  by  traversing  many  a  fruitless 
mile. 

The  literature  of  England,  during  the  most  of  the 
last  century,  presents  a  picture  of  literary  ostentation. 
The  Deists  had  toiled  to  build  up  a  system  of  natural 
religion  which  would  not  only  be  a  monument  to  their 
genius,  but  serve  as  an  impassable  barrier  to  all  such 
claims  as  were  urged  by  the  zealous  and  loud-spoken 
Puritans.  But  early  Deism  lacked  an  indispensable 
element  of  strength, — the  power  of  adapting  itself  to 
the  people.     Its  best  priests  could  not  leave  the  tripod. 


INFLUENCE    OF    LITERATURE.  441 

though  many  of  the  oracular  responses  were  heard  some 
distance  from  the  temple-doors.  In  time,  there  arose  a 
group  of  essayists  and  poets,  who,  with  a  similar  coterie 
of  novelists,  dictated  religion,  morals,  politics,  and  lit- 
erature to  the  country.  Their  influence  was  so  great 
that  when  they  flattered  the  heads  of  government,  the 
latter  were  equally  assiduous  in  playing  the  Maecenas 
to  them. 

The  writers  of  the  eighteenth  century,  viewed  in  a 
literary  sense  alone,  have  never  had  their  superiors  in 
English  literature.  The  works  of  Addison,  Pope,  Gray, 
Thomson,  Goldsmith,  and  Johnson  will  continue  to  be 
classics  wherever  the  English  language  is  spoken.  The 
British  metropolis  was  pervaded  with  the  atmosphere 
of  Parnassus.  It  was  a  time  when  literature  was  the 
El  Dorado  of  youth  and  old  age.  Those  were  the  days 
when  clubs  convened  statedly  in  the  neighborhood  of 
the  Strand,  and  when,  every  night,  the  attics  of  Grub 
street  poured  out  their  throngs  of  quill-heroes,  who 
were  welcomed  into  the  parlors  of  the  nobility  as  cor- 
dially as  to  their  own  club-houses.  The  last  new  work 
engaged  universal  attention.  Society  was  filled  with 
rumors  of  books  commenced,  half  finished,  plagiarized, 
successful,  or  defunct.  Literary  respectability  was  the 
"  Open  Sesame  "  to  social  rank.  There  has  never  been 
a  season  when  cultivated  society  was  more  imbued  with 
the  mania  of  book- writing  and  criticism  than  existed  in 
England  during  at  least  three-quarters  of  the  eighteenth 
century. 

While  many  of  the  publications  of  that  time  were 
prompted  by  Deism,  French  society  and  literature  were 
contributing  an  equal  share  toward  poisoning  the  Eng- 
lish mind.  France  and  England  were  so  intimately  re- 
lated  to  each  other  that  the  two  languages  were  dili- 


442  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

gently  studied  in  both  countries.  If  the  English  adven 
turer  in  letters  had  not  spent  a  few  months  in  Paris,  and 
could  not  read  Corneille  almost  as  readily  as  Spenser  or 
Shakspeare,  he  was  cashiered  by  certain  Gallicists  west 
of  the  Channel  as  a  sorry  aspirant  to  their  coveted 
favor.1  The  rise  of  the  French  spirit  in  England  was 
mainly  due  to  Bolingbroke,  who  was  as  much  at  home 
in  Paris  as  in  London.  He  had  numerous  friends  and 
admirers  in  the  former  metropolis,  and  at  two  different 
times  made  it  his  residence.  Freely  imbibing  the  skep- 
tical opinions  of  the  court  of  Louis  XIV.,  he  dealt 
them  out  unsparingly  to  his  English  readers.  He 
was  one  of  the  most  accomplished  wits  who  fre- 
quented the  salon  of  Madame  de  Croissy,  and  he  de- 
veloped his  skeptical  system  through  the  medium  of 
the  French  language,  in  a  series  of  letters  to  M.  de 
Pouilly.2 

Bolingbroke  accused  the  greatest  divines  and  phi- 
losophers of  leading  a  great  part  of  mankind  into  inex- 
tricable labyrinths  of  reasoning  and  speculation.  Nat- 
ural theology  and  religion,  he  held,  had  become  corrupt. 
In  view  of  these  results  of  mental  infirmities,  he  applied 
himself  to  correct  all  errors.  He  proposed  "  to  distin- 
guish genuine  and  pure  theism  from  the  profane  mix 
tures  of  human  imagination ;  and  to  go  to  the  root  ot 
that  error  which  encourages  our  curiosity,  sustains  our 
pride,  fortifies  our  prejudices,  and  gives  pretense  to  de- 
lusion ;  to  discover  the  true  nature  of  human  knowl- 
edge, how  far  it  extends,  how  far  it  is  real,  and  where 
and  how  it  begins  to  be  fantastical ;  that,  the  gaudy 
visions  of  error  being  dispelled,  men  may  be  accustomed 

1  For  an  excellent  view  of  the  relation  of  France  and  England  in  the 
eighteenth  century,  vid.  Revue  des  Deux  Mondes,  1  Dec,  1861. 

2  Schlosser.  History  of  the  Eighteenth  Century,  vol.  i.,  p.  98. 


INFLUENCE    OF   THE    ENGLISH   NOBILITY.  443 

to  tlie  simplicity  of  truth."  l  The  Scriptui'es,  according 
to  Bolingbroke,  are  unworthy  of  our  credence.  They 
degrade  the  Deity  to  mean  and  unworthy  offices  and 
employments.2  The  New  Testament  consists  of  two 
distinct  gospels  ;  one  by  Christ,  the  other  by  St.  PauL 
The  doctrine  of  future  rewards  and  punishments  is  ab- 
surd, and  contrary  to  the  divine  attributes.3  Chris- 
tianity has  been  of  no  advantage  to  mankind.  "  The 
world  hath  not  been  effectually  reformed,  nor  any  one 
nation  in  it,  by  the  promulgation  of  the  gospel,  even 
where  Christianity  nourished  most." 4  There  is  a 
supreme  All-Perfect  Being,  but  he  does  not  concern 
himself  with  human  affairs  as  far  as  individuals  are 
concerned.  The  soul  is  not  distinct  from  the  body,  and 
both  terminate  at  death.  The  law  of  nature,  being 
sufficient  for  the  purposes  of  our  being,  is  all  that  God 
has  proclaimed  for  our  guidance.5 

There  were  other  members  of  the  English  nobil- 
ity who  used  their  influence  for  the  introduction 
of  French  infidelity,  literature,  morals,  and  fashions. 
Some  did  not  equal  Bolingbroke  in  repudiating  the 
spirit  of  the  gospel,  but  nearly  all  were  willing  students 
at  the  feet  of  their  pretentious  Gallic  instructors.  The 
house  of  Lady  Mary  Wortley  Montague,  at  Wickenham, 
was  the  centre  whither  gravitated  that  large  class  of 
acknowledged  chiefs  in  letters  represented  by  Steele, 
Pope,  and  the  Walpoles.  They  thought,  spoke,  and 
dressed  according  to  the  French  standard,  which,  in 
respect  to  religion  and  morals,  was  never  lower  than  at 
tii  at  very  time.     The  attempt  to  rear  a  Paris  on  English 

!  Works,  vol.  iii.,  p.  328.     London  Edition  of  1754.     5  vols.,  quarto. 
1  Ibid.  p.  304.  ■  Ibid.  vol.  v.,  p.  356.  4  Ibid.  p.  258. 

•  Leland,  View  of  Deistical  Writers  of  England,  pp.  307-308.     London 
Edition  of  1837,  with  Appendix  and  Introduction,  bv  Brown  and  Edmonds 
30 


444  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

soil  was  a  complete  success.  The  young  were  delighted 
with  the  result;  the  aged  had  been  too  ill-taught  in 
early  life  to  raise  the  voice  of  remonstrance.  With  the 
exception  of  the  Puritan  opposition,  the  gratification  was 
universal ;  and  that  took  place  in  religion  and  literature 
which,  had  it  occurred  in  warfare,  would  have  kindled 
a  flame  of  national  indignation  in  every  breast :  Eng- 
land fell  powerless,  contented,  and  doomed  into  the 
arms  of  France. 

The  attacks  of  Hume  and  Gibbon  on  the  divine 
origin  of  Christianity  take  rank  with  the  mischievous 
influences  imparted  by  the  elder  school  of  Deists,  and 
by  French  taste  and  immorality. 

Hume  was  a  philosopher  who  drew  his  inspiration 
directly  from  his  own  times.  Attaching  himself  to  the 
Encyclopaedists,  he  played  the  wit  in  the  salons  of  Paris. 
He  became  fraternally  intimate  with  Kousseau,  and 
brought  that  social  dreamer  back  with  him  to  England 
as  a  mark  of  high  appreciation  of  his  talents.  He  was 
a  metaphysician  by  nature,  but  he  erred  in  speculat- 
ing with  theology.  That  was  the  mistake  of  his  life. 
He  fell  into  Bolingbroke's  error  of  excessive  egotism. 
Standing  before  the  superstructure  of  theology,  he  care- 
fully surveyed  every  part  of  it,  and  deemed  no  theme 
too  lofty  for  his  reasonings,  and  no  mystery  beyond 
the  reach  of  his  illuminating  torch.  He  lamented  the 
absence  of  progress  in  the  understanding  of  that  evi- 
dence which  assures  us  of  any  real  existence  and  matter 
of  fact.  But  this  difficulty  did  not  impede  him  from  an 
attempted  solution.  He  thought  himself  performing  a 
great  service  when  he  addressed  himself  to  the  "  de- 
struction of  that  implicit  faith  and  credulity  which  is 
the  bane  of  all  reasoning  and  free  inquiry."  x     He  re- 

"•  Philosophical  Essays  concerning  Human  Understanding,  p.  49.     Lon- 
don Edition,  1750. 


HUME   ON    MI3ACLES.  445 

fused  to  acknowledge  a  Supreme  Being,  in  the  follow- 
ing words :  "  While  we  argue  from  the  course  of  na- 
ture, and  infer  a  particular  intelligent  cause,  which  at 
first  bestowed  and  still  preserves  order  in  the  universe, 
we  embrace  a  principle  which  is  both  uncertain  and 
useless,  because  the  subject  lies  entirely  beyond  the 
reach  of  human  experience."  * 

The  miraculous  evidences  of  Christianity  were  also 
opposed  by  Hume.  His  Essay  on  Miracles  (1747), 
consists  of  two  parts;  the  former  of  which  is  an  attempt 
to  prove  that  no  evidence  would  be  a  sufficient  ground 
for  believing  the  truth  and  existence  of  miracles.  Expe- 
rience is  our  only  guide  in  reasoning  on  matters  of  fact ; 
but  even  this  guide  is  far  from  infallible,  and  liable  at 
any  moment  to  lead  us  into  errors.  In  judging  how  far 
a  testimony  is  to  be  depended  upon,  we  must  balance  the 
opposite  circumstances,  which  may  create  any  doubt  or 
uncertainty.  The  evidence  from  testimony  may  be  de- 
stroyed either  by  the  contrariety  and  opposition  of  the 
testimony,  or  by  the  consideration  of  the  nature  of  the 
facts  themselves.  When  the  facts  partake  of  the  mar- 
velous there  are  two  opposite  experiences  with  regard  to 
them,  and  that  which  is  most  credible  is  to  be  prefer- 
red. Now  the  uniform  experience  of  men  is  against 
miracles.  We  should  not,  therefore,  believe  any  tes- 
timony concerning  a  miracle,  unless  the  falsehood  of 
that  testimony  should  be  more  miraculous  than  the 
miracle  it  is  designed  to  establish.  Besides,  as  we 
cannot  know  the  attributes  or  actions  of  God  otherwise 
than  by  our  experience  of  them,  we  cannot  be  sure  that 
he  can  effect  miracles ;  for  they  are  contrary  to  our  own 
experience  and  the  course  of  nature.  Therefore,  it  is 
impossible  to  prove  miracles  by  any  evidence. 

1  Philosophical  Essays,  dtc,  p.  224. 


i46  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

The  second  part  of  the  Essay  on  Miracles  is  in- 
tended to  show  that,  supposing  a  miracle  capable  of 
being  proved  by  sufficient  testimony,  no  miraculous 
event  in  history  has  ever  been  established  on  such 
evidence.  The  witnesses  of  a  miracle  should  be  of 
such  unquestionable  good  sense,  education,  and  learn- 
ing, as  to  secure  us  against  all  delusion  in  themselves. 
They  should  also  be  of  such  undoubted  integrity  as  to 
place  them  beyond  all  suspicion  of  design  to  deceive 
others.  Then  they  should  be  of  such  credit  and  repu- 
tation in  the  eyes  of  mankind  as  to  have  a  great  deal  to 
lose  if  detected  in  any  falsehood.  Last  of  all,  the  facts 
attested  by  the  witnesses  should  be  performed  in  such 
a  public  manner,  and  in  so  celebrated  a  part  of  the 
world,  as  to  render  detection  unavoidable.1 

Now,  according  to  Hume,  these  requisitions  are  not 
met  in  the  supposed  witnesses  of  the  miracles  of  Christ. 
Consequently,  we  are  no  more  obliged  to  believe  their 
accounts  than  the  reports  of  miracles  alleged  to  have 
been  wrought  at  the  tomb  of  the  Abbe  de  Paris.  All 
must  be  rejected  together. 

Hume's  History  of  England  met  with  a  cold  recep- 
tion on  its  first  appearance.  But  he  lived  to  see  the 
day  when,  as  he  egotistically  said,  "  it  became  circu- 
lated like  the  newspapers."  Yet  he  wrote  that  work 
not  as  an  end,  but  as  a  means.  Historical  writing  was 
then  the  medium  in  which  it  was  common  to  couch 
theology  or  philosophy.  Hume  had  a  profound  con- 
tempt for  everything  Puritanic  on  the  one  hand,  and 
hierarchical  and  traditional  on  the  other.  He  would 
make  every  trace  disappear  beneath  his  scathing  pen. 
He  ignored  the  development  of  religious  life  in  Eng- 
land, and  would  subject  all  events  which  indicated  a 

1  Leland,  View  of  Deistical  Writers,  pp.  230-250. 


GIBBON'S    ROMAN    EMPIRE.  447 

deep  Christian  piety  and  purpose,  to  his  cold  system 
of  philosophy.  Writing  with  an  inflexible  adherence 
to  his  theological  opinions,  he  cast  over  historical  events 
the  drapery  of  his  own  interpretation.  The  question 
with  liim  was  not,  "  What  is  the  history  of  England 
during  the  period  of  which  I  treat  I "  but  "  Does  not 
the  history  of  England  sustain  my  philosophy  ?  "  And 
his  own  answer  was,  "  Yes ;  I  record  facts,  and  draw 
my  own  conclusions.     Is  not  that  a  good  philosophy  !  " 

Gibbon  was  even  more  of  a  Frenchman  than  Hume. 
Sundering  his  relation  to  Oxford  in  his  seventeenth 
year,  he  embarked  upon  a  course  of  living  and  thinking 
which,  whatever  advantage  it  might  afford  to  his  purse, 
was  not  likely  to  aid  his  faith.  By  a  sudden  caprice  he 
became  a  Roman  Catholic,  and  afterwards  as  uncere- 
moniously denied  his  adopted  creed.  In  due  time  he 
found  himself  in  Paris  publishing  a  book  in  the  French 
language.  He  there  fell  in  with  the  fashionable  in- 
fidelity,  and  so  far  yielded  to  the  flattery  of  Helvetius 
and  all  the  frequenters  of  Holbach's  house  that  he 
jested  at  Christianity  and  assailed  its  divine  character. 

While  residing  at  Lausanne,  Switzerland,  he  culti 
vated  the  florid  French  style  of  composition,  and  ap- 
plied it  in  his  Decline  and  Fall  of  the  Roman  Mnpirc. 
That  work  has  been  severely  censured,  but  despite  its 
defects,  it  is  one  of  the  permanent  master-pieces  of  Eng- 
lish literature.  In  the  fifteenth  and  sixteenth  chapters 
the  author  gives  his  opinion  of  Christianity.  He  at- 
tributes the  progress  of  the  Christian  religion  to  the 
zeal  of  the  Jews,  to  the  doctrine  of  the  immortality  of 
the  soul  as  stated  by  philosophers,  to  the  miraculous 
powers  claimed  by  the  primitive  church,  to  the  virtues 
of  the  first  Christians,  and  to  the  activity  of  the  Chris- 
tians in  the  government  of  the  church.     He  attributed 


4  48  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

to  outward  agencies  what  could  have  been  effected  only 
by  inward  forces.  But  he  did  not  assume  the  philoso- 
pher's cap,  for,  not  being  metaphysical  by  nature,  he 
never  did  violence  to  his  own  constitution.  He  has  left 
much  less  on  record  against  Christianity  than  Hume, 
but  they  must  be  ranked  together  as  the  last  of  the 
family  of  English  Deists. 

Gibbon  made  loud  professions  of  independence  and 
of  an  earnest  desire  for  the  enlargement  of  popular 
liberty.  But  he  was  less  attached  to  principle  than  to 
expediency.  At  the  very  time  the  first  volume  of  his 
history  appeared,  in  which  he  pays  lofty  tributes  to 
human  freedom,  he  came  into  Parliament  as  an  avowed 
abettor  of  the  ministry  of  George  III.,  in  their  attempts 
to  subjugate  the  American  colonies.  He  was  doubtless 
well  paid  for  his  votes ;  for  he  was  at  the  same  time  a 
member  of  the  Board  of  Trade,  a  nominal  office  with  a 
large  salary.1  A  verse,  attributed  to  Fox,  expresses 
the  popular  sentiment  concerning  him  ; 

"  King  George  in  a  fright 
Lest  Gibbon  should  write 

The  story  of  England's  disgrace, 
Thought  no  way  so  sure, 
His  pen  to  secure, 

As  to  give  the  historian  a  place." 

In  addition  to  these  evidences  of  religious  decay  we 
may  add  the  most  unwelcome  of  all :  the  moral  prostra- 
tion of  the  English  Church.  Instead  of  being  "a  city 
set  upon  a  hill,"  she  was  in  the  valley  of  humiliation  ; 
and  few  were  the  faithful  watchmen  upon  her  walls. 
The  period  commencing  with  the  Restoration,  and  con- 
tinuing down  to  the  time  of  which  we  speak,  was  one 

1  Schlosser,  History  of  the  Eighteenth  Century,  vol.  ii.,  p.  85-86. 


bishop  buenet's  statement.  449 

of  ministerial  and  laic  degeneracy.  Bishop  Burnet, 
writing  of  his  own  generation,  said,  "  I  am  now  in  the 
seventieth  year  of  my  age,  and  as  I  cannot  speak  long 
in  the  world,  in  any  sort,  I  cannot  hope  for  a  more 
solemn  occasion  than  this  of  speaking  with  all  due  free- 
dom, both  to  the  present  and  to  the  succeeding  ages. 
Therefore  I  lay  hold  on  it  to  give  a  free  vent  to  those 
sad  thoughts  that  lie  on  my  mind  both  day  and  night, 
and  are  the  subject  of  many  secret  mournings.  I  can- 
not look  on  without  the  deepest  concern,  when  I  see  the 
imminent  ruin  hanging  over  this  church,  and,  by  con- 
sequence, over  the  whole  Reformation.  The  outward 
state  of  things  is  black  enough,  God  knows,  but  that 
which  heightens  my  fears  rises  chiefly  from  the  inward 
state  into  which  we  are  unhappily  fallen.  .  .  .  Our 
ember-weeks  are  the  burden  and  grief  of  my  life.  The 
much  greater  part  of  those  who  come  to  be  ordained 
are  ignorant  to  a  degree  not  to  be  apprehended  by 
those  who  are  not  obliged  to  know  it.  The  easiest  part 
of  knowledge  is  that  to  which  they  are  the  greatest 
strangers.  Those  who  have  read  some  few  books,  yet 
never  seem  to  have  read  the  Scriptures.  Many  cannot 
give  even  a  tolerable  account  of  the  Catechism  itself, 
how  short  and  plain  soever.  This  does  often  tear  my 
heart.  The  case  is  not  much  better  in  many  who,  having 
got  into  orders,  come  for  institution,  and  cannot  make  it 
appear  that  they  have  read  the  Scriptures,  or  any  one 
good  book  since  they  were  ordained  ;  so  that  the  small 
measure  of  knowledge  upon  which  they  get  into  holy 
orders,  not  being  improved,  is  in  a  way  to  be  quite  lost ; 
and  they  thiuk  it  a  great  hardship  if  told  they  must 
know  the  Scriptures  and  the  body  of  divinity  better  be- 
fore they  can  be  trusted  with  the  care  of  souls."  * 

1  Pastoral  Care. 


450  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Archbishop  Seeker,  who  wrote  at  a  late.*  period, 
testifies  to  the  same  state  of  religious  petrification :  "  In 
this  we  cannot  be  mistaken,  that  an  open  and  professed 
disregard  is  become,  through  a  variety  of  unhappy 
causes,  the  distinguishing  character  of  the  present  age  ; 
that  this  evil  is  grown  to  a  great  height  in  the  metrop- 
olis of  the  nation  ;  is  daily  spreading  through  every 
part  of  it ;  and,  bad  in  itself  as  any  can  be,  must  of  ne- 
cessity bring  in  others  after  it.  Indeed  it  hath  already 
brought  in  such  dissoluteness  and  contempt  of  princi- 
ple m  the  higher  part  of  the  world,  and  such  profligate 
intemperance,  and  fearlessness  of  committing  crimes,  in 
the  lower,  as  must,  if  this  impiety  stop  not,  become  ab- 
solutely fatal.  And  God  knows,  far  from  stopping,  it 
receives,  through  the  ill  designs  of  some  persons,  and 
the  inconsiderateness  of  others,  a  continual  increase. 
Christianity  is  now  ridiculed  and  railed  at,  with  very 
little  reserve ;  and  the  teachers  of  it,  without  any  at 
all."1 

The  Church  had  not  the  moral  power  or  purity  to 
assert  her  own  authority.  She  had  lost  the  respect  of 
the  world  because  she  had  no  respect  for  herself.  She 
was  therefore  enervated  at  a  time  when  all  her  power 
was  needed  to  resist  the  skeptical  and  immoral  tenden- 
cies of  the  day.  But  a  new  religious  power,  from  an  unex- 
pected source,  began  to  influence  the  English  mind.  We 
refer  to  the  movement  inaugurated  by  the  Wesleys  and 
Whitefield,  who  were  fellow-students  in  Oxford  Univer- 
sity. They  were  appalled  at  the  dissoluteness  of  the 
students,  the  frigid  preaching  of  the  day,  and  the  uni- 
versal religious  destitution  of  the  nation.  These  themes 
burdened  the  hearts  of  the  "Holy  Club"  at  Oxford 
from  day  to  day,  and  sent  them  from  their  cloisters  to 

1  Works,  vol.  v.,  p.  306. 


THE    WESLEY  AN    MOVEMENT.  451 

visit  prisons,  preach  in  surrounding  towns,  and  impart 
religious  truth  wherever  a  willing  recipient  could  be 
found.  No  sooner  had  John  Wesley  returned  from  his 
missionary  voyage  to  Georgia  than  there  were  unmis- 
takable evidences  of  the  adaptation  of  the  new  preach, 
mg  to  the  wants  of  the  people.  The  masses,  long 
affected  by  a  deplorable  indifference  to  religious 
truths  and  pious  living,  heard  the  earnest  preaching 
of  the  Methodists  with  profound  attention  and  in 
such  large  numbers  that  no  impartial  observer  could 
doubt  the  peculiar  fitness  of  Methodism  to  the  existing 
state  of  society,  morals,  literature,  and  philosophy.  As 
a  result,  the  number  of  converts  multiplied.  The  Es- 
tablished Church  was  aroused  to  activity.  Dissenters 
began  to  hope  for  the  return  of  the  good  days  of  Bun- 
yan  and  Baxter  and  Howe. 

Isaac  Taylor  says  of  the  new  influence,  that  "  it 
preserved  from  extinction  and  reanimated  the  lan- 
guishing nonconformity  of  the  last  century,  which  just 
at  the  time  of  the  Methodist  revival,  was  rapidly  in 
course  to  be  found  nowhere  but  in  books."  But  the 
Wesleyan  movement  made  little  impression  on  the 
literary  circles  to  whom  Bolingbroke,  Hume,  and  Gib- 
bon had  communicated  their  gospel  of  nature.  The 
poets  continued  to  sing,  the  essayists  to  write,  and 
the  philosophers  to  speculate,  in  a  world  peculiarly 
their  own.  They  shut  themselves  quite  in  from  the 
itinerant  "  helpers  "  of  Wesley.  The  large  class  of  Eng- 
lish minds  which  stood  aloof  from  all  ecclesiastical 
organizations,  and  failed  to  see  any  higher  cause  of 
the  revival  than  mere  enthusiasm,  were  the  persons 
whom  those  writers  still  influenced.  But  it  was  plain 
to  both  the  masters  and  their  disciples  that  their  princi- 
ples were  in  process  of  transition.     They  were   there- 


452  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

fore  ready  for  the  reception  of  whatever  plausible  type 
of  skepticism  might  present  itself  for  their  accept- 
ance. 

History  is  the  illustration  of  cause  and  effect.  The 
fountain  springs  up  in  one  period,  and  generations  often 
pass  before  it  finds  its  natural  outlet.  The  issue  of  the 
final  efforts  of  English  Deism,  of  the  impure  French 
taste,  and  of  the  works  of  the  grosser  class  of  literary 
men  living  in  the  last  century,  is  now  manifested  in  that 
spirit  which  welcomes  the  Essays  and  Reviews,  and  the 
criticism  of  Colenso.  It  is  not  true  that  these  and  sim- 
ilar publications  have  created  a  Rationalistic  taste  in 
Great  Britain.  The  taste  was  already  in  existence,  and 
has  been  struggling  for  satisfaction  ever  since  the  closing 
decades  of  the  eighteenth  century. 


CHAPTER    XX. 

ENGLAND  CONTINUED  :   PHILOSOPHICAL  AND  LITERARY  RA- 
TIONALISM.—COLERIDGE   AND  OARLYLE. 

All  history  betrays  the  operation  of  a  compensating 
principle.  The  payment  may  be  slow,  but  there  is  sel- 
dom total  repudiation.  An  influence  which  departs 
from  a  country  and  sets  in  upon  its  neighbor,  trans- 
forming thought,  giving  new  shades  to  social  life,  and 
instilling  foreign  principles  into  politics,  is  sure,  in 
course  of  time,  to  return  from  its  wanderings,  bearing 
with  it  other  forces  with  which  to  react  upon  the  land 
whence  it  originated.  Thought,  like  the  tidal  wave, 
visits  all  latitudes  with  its  ebb  and  flow. 

The  present  condition  of  Anglican  theology  is  an 
illustration  of  intellectual  re-payment.  Two  centuries 
ago  England  gave  Deism  to  Germany,  and  the  latter 
country  is  now  paying  back  the  debt  with  compound  in- 
terest. After  the  Eevolution  of  1789,  and  the  brilliant 
ascendency  of  Napoleon  Bonaparte,  the  French  spirit 
rapidly  lost  its  hold  upon  the  English  mind.  But  there 
immediately  arose  a  disposition  to  consult  German  the- 
ology and  philosophy.  English  students  frequented 
the  German  universities,  and  the  works  of  the  leading 
thinkers  of  Berlin,  Heidelberg,  and  Halle,  were  on  sale 
in  the  book-stores  of  London.  The  intimate  relations 
of  the  royal  family  of  England  to   Germany,  together 


454  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

with  the  alliance  between  the  German  States  and  Great 
Britain  for  the  arrest  of  French  arms,  increased  the 
tendency  until  it  assumed  importance  and  power.  The 
fruit  was  first  visible  in  the  application  of  German  na- 
tionalism and  philosophy  to  English  theology.  When 
Coleridge  came  from  the  Fatherland  with  a  new  system 
of  opinions,  he  felt  as  proud  of  his  good  fortune  as 
Columbus  did  on  laying  a  continent  at  his  sovereign's 
feet.  Ever  since  that  profound  thinker  assumed  a  fixed 
position,  a  reaction  against  orthodoxy  has  been  pro- 
gressing in  the  Established  Church.  There  are  reasons 
why  the  slow  but  effectual  introduction  of  German  Ra- 
tionalism has  been  taking  place  imperceptibly. 

The  war  which  had  agitated  England,  with  the  rest 
of  Europe,  came  to  a  close  in  1815.  Immediately  after- 
ward domestic  politics  needed  adjustment.  "The  dis- 
abilities were  swept  away,"  says  a  writer,  "  the  House  of 
Commons  was  reconstituted,  the  municipalities  were 
reformed,  slavery  was  abolished."  *  In  due  time  the  na- 
tion became  adjusted  to  peace ;  the  popular  mind  lost 
its  nervousness;  the  universities  returned  to  their  sober 
thinking;  and  the  Church  took  a  careful  survey  to  ascer- 
tain what  had  been  lost  in  the  recent  conflict,  what 
gained,  and  what  new  fields  lay  ready  for  her  enterprise. 
But  very  soon  fresh  political  combinations  attracted  the 
attention  of  all  classes.  The  revolutionary  changes  and 
counter-changes  in  France  were  watched  with  eager  at- 
tention lest  Waterloo  might  be  avenged  in  some  unex- 
pected manner.  At  home,  church  parties  were  reviv- 
ing the  old  antagonisms  described  by  the  pen  of  Ma- 
caulay.  The  popular  mind  has  thus  been  continually 
directed  toward  some  exciting  theme.  England  has  not 
had  a  day  of  leisure  during  the  whole  of  the  last  half 

1  National  Review,  Oct.,  1850. 


SA3IUEL    TAYLOR    COLEELDGE.  455 

century,  when  she  could  come  to  a  judicious  conclusion 
concerning  that  class  of  her  thinkers  who,  though  they 
make  theology  their  profession,  are  so  intensely  inde- 
pendent as  to  attach  themselves  to  no  creed  or  ecclesias- 
tical organization.  But  the)-  have  been  thinking  a 
the  time,  and  the  outgrowth  of  their  thought  is  now 
visible. 

English  Rationalism  consists  of  three  departments  : 
Philosophical,  Literary,  and  Critical  Rationalism.  When- 
ever infidelity  has  arisen,  whether  within  or  without 
the  Church,  it  has  usually  developed  these  forms.  Phi- 
losophy has  furnished  undevout  reason  with  a  fund  of 
speculative  objections  to  revelation ;  literature  has  daz- 
zled and  bewildered  the  young  and  all  lovers  of  ro- 
mance ;  and  criticism  has  seized  the  deductions  of 
science,  language,  and  ethnology,  and  by  their  com- 
bined aid  aimed  at  the  overthrow  of  the  historical  and 
inspired  basis  of  faith.  Each  of  these  three  agents  is  in 
constant  danger  of  arrogance  and  error.  The  first,  by 
a  single  false  assumption,  may  lose  its  way ;  the  second, 
by  making  too  free  use  of  the  imagination,  can  easily 
forget  wThen  it  is  dealing  with  faith  and  facts ;  and  the 
third,  by  one  act  of  over-reaching,  is  liable  to  become 
puerile,  fanciful,  and  unreliable.  The  philosopher,  the 
litterateur,  and  the  exegete  need  to  be  less  observant  of 
the  surrounding  world  than  of  the  purity  of  their  own 
inner  life  and  the  teachings  of  the  Holy  Spirit. 

Philosophical  Rationalism  in  England  commenced 
with  Samuel  Taylor  Coleridge.  A  comprehensive  view 
of  that  metaphysician  produces  a  painful  impression. 
Though  gifted  with  capacity  for  any  sphere  of  thought, 
he  did  not  excel  in  either  so  far  as  to  enable  us  to 
assign  him  a  fixed  place  in  literature.  He  is  known  as 
poet,  theologian,  and  philosopher.     But  his  own  desire 


456  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

tvas  that  posterity  might  regard  him  as  a  theologian. 
In  addition  to  this  indeterniinateness  of  position,  which 
always  seriously  detracts  from  a  great  name,  Coleridge 
presents  the  unfortunate  example  of  a  man  who,  instead 
<  >f  laboring  with  settled  convictions,  and  achieving  sue 
cess  by  virtue  of  their  operation,  seems  to  have  only 
striven  after  them.  His  indefinite  status  was  the  result 
of  that  theological  difficulty  which  proved  his  greatest 
misfortune.  His  sentiments  never  partook  of  an  evan- 
gelical character  until  the  latter  part  of  his  life.  His 
habits  of  thought  had  become  confirmed,  and  it  was 
quite  too  late  to  counteract  the  influence  of  many  views 
previously  expressed. 

So  far  as  we  are  able  to  collect  the  opinions  of  Cole- 
ridge by  fragments  from  his  writings,  we  discover  two 
elements,  which,  coming  from  totally  different  sources, 
and  originating  in  different  ages,  harmonized  in  his 
mind  and  constituted  the  mass  of  his  speculations.  One 
was  Grecian,  taking  its  rise  in  Plato  and  afterward 
becoming  assimilated  to  Christianity  at  Alexandria. 
The  other  was  German,  derived  directly  from  Kant,  and 
undergoing  no  improvement  by  its  processes  of  trans- 
formation at  the  hands  of  that  philosopher's  successors. 
"  From  the  Greek,"  says  Dr.  Shedd,  "  he  derived  the 
doctrine  of  Ideas,  and  fully  sympathized  with  his 
warmly-glowing  and  poetic  utterance  of  philosophic 
truths.  From  the  German  he  derived  the  more  strictly 
scientific  part  of  his  system — the  fundamental  distinc- 
tions between  the  Understanding  and  the  Reason  (with 
the  sub-distinction  of  the  latter  into  Speculative  and 
Practical),  and  between  Nature  and  Spirit.  With  him 
also  he  sympathized  in  that  deep  conviction  of  the  ab- 
solute nature  and  validity  of  the  great  ideas  of  God, 
Freedom,  and  Immortality — of  the  binding  obligation 


STRUGGLES    OF    COLERIDGE.  457 

of  conscience — and  generally  of  the  supremacy  of  the 
Moral  and  Practical  over  the  purely  Speculative.  In- 
deed, any  one  who  goes  to  the  study  of  Kant,  after 
having  made  himself  acquainted  with  the  writings  of 
Coleridge,  will  be  impressed  by  the  spontaneous  and 
vital  concurrence  of  the  latter  with  the  former — the 
heartiness  and  entireness  with  which  the  Englishman 
enters  into  the  method  and  system  of  this,  in  many 
respects,  greatest  philosopher  of  the  modern  world."  x 

The  Platonic  element  in  the  speculations  of  Cole- 
ridge is  of  earlier  date  than  the  German.  It  was  his 
reliance  until  introduced  to  the  captivating  opinions  of 
the  philosopher  of  Konigsberg.  But  it  never  wholly 
left  him, — it  was  the  enchantment  of  his  life. 

He  had  severe  struggles.  His  conquest  of  the  habit 
of  opium-eating,  contracted  to  soothe  physical  suffering, 
is  an  index  of  the  persistent  purpose  of  the  man.  At 
first  an  ardent  Unitarian,  he  was  once  about  to  assume 
charge  of  a  congregation  at  Shrewsbury.  But  he  finally 
declined  the  offer,  by  saying  that,  "  Active  zeal  for 
Unitarian  Christianity,  not  indolence  or  indifference, 
has  been  the  motive  of  my  declining  a  local  and  solid 
settlement  as  preacher  of  it." 2 

The  media  through  which  he  passed  in  search  of 
light  were  numerous.  He  seems  to  have  gone  to 
Germany  under  the  impression  that  he  would  there 
find  what  he  had  fruitlessly  sought  in  England.  No 
one  will  deny  that  the  philosophy  of  Kant  was  better 
than  the  English  empirical  system  of  the  eighteenth 
century,  which  was  the  best  metaphysical  pabulum  he 

1  Introductory  Essay  to  Coleridge's  Works.     Vol.  i.,  pp.  21-22.     Har- 
per's edition. 

4  Letter  dated  Shrewsbury,  Jan.  19th,  1798,  to  Mr.  Isaac  Wood,  High 

St.,  Shrewsbury. 


±58  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

had  received  at  home.  He  applied  himself  to  the  assid- 
uous study  of  Kant's  disciples,  but  the  master  satisfied 
him  best.  Nevertheless,  Coleridge  was  uot  mentally 
adapted  to  the  Kantian  system.  He  had  a  psychical 
affinity  for  Schelling.  He  loved  him  as  a  brother.  He 
was  charmed  with  his  vivid  imagination,  warm  admira- 
tion of  all  natural  forms,  and  ardent,  impulsive  temper- 
ament. Schellings  philosophy  was  Spinozism  in  poetry, 
and  there  can  be  no  question  of  Coleridge's  former 
adoption  of  some  parts  of  the  Hollander's  naturalism. 
But  his  tenacity  to  them,  as  well  as  his  subsequent 
affiliation  with  Schelling,  was  short-lived.  When  he 
awoke  to  the  unmistakable  stratum  of  Pantheism  under- 
lying Schelling's  system,  he  hastily  forsook  it,  and  his 
diatribes  indignantly  hurled  against  one  whom  he  had 
so  enthusiastically  admired  are  the  more  notable  be 
cause  of  his  former  intense  sympathy.  From  Schelling 
he  returned  once  more  to  Kant  as  the  thinker  who  had 
more  closely  approximated  the  truth.  His  mind  must 
have  undergone  a  total  revolution  when  he  could  write 
such  words  as  these  :  "  Spite  of  all  the  superior  airs  of 
the  JVatur-JPhilo-sophie,  I  confess  that  in  the  perusal  of 
Kant  I  breathe  the  air  of  good  sense  and  logical  under- 
standing with  the  light  of  reason  shining  in  it  and 
through  it;  while  in  the  Physics  of  Schelling  I  am 
amused  with  happy  conjectures,  and  in  his  Theology 
I  am  bewildered  by  positions  which,  in  their  first  sense, 
are  transcendental  {libivfliegeiul),  and  in  their  literal 
sense  scandalous."  x 

Coleridge  became  firmly  settled  in  theistic  faith. 
Occupying  that  as  his  final  position,  he  is  destined  to 
wield  a  great  salutary  power  over  English  thought. 
Dr.  Shedd,  in  estimating  the  probable  future  influence 

'  Biographia  Liter  aria.     Appendix  III.,  p.  709. 


THEISTIC    FAITH    OF    COLERIDGE.  459 

oi*  his  theistic  system,  says  :  "  Now  as  the  defender  and 
interpreter  of  this  decidedly  and  profoundly  theistic 
system  of  philosophy,  we  regard  the  works  of  Coleridge 
as  of  great  and  growing  worth,  in  the  present  state  of 
the  educated  and  thinking  world.  It  is  not  to  be  dis- 
guised that  Pantheism  is  the  most  formidable  opponent 
which  truth  has  to  encounter  in  the  cultivated  and 
reflecting  classes.  We  do  not  here  allude  to  the  formal 
reception  and  logical  defense  of  the  system,  so  much  as 
to  that  pantheistic  way  of  thinking,  which  is  uncon- 
sciously stealing  into  the  lighter  and  more  imaginative 
species  of  modern  literature,  and  from  them  is  passing 
over  into  the  principles  and  opinions  of  men  at  large. 
This  popularized  Naturalism — this  Naturalism  of  polite 
literature  and  of  literary  society — is  seen  in  the  lack  of 
that  depth  and  strength  of  tone,  and  that  heartiness 
and  robustness  of  temper,  which  characterize  a  mind 
into  which  the  personality  of  God,  and  the  responsibility 
of  man  cut  sharply,  and  which  does  not  cowardly 
shrink  from  a  severe  and  salutary  moral  consciousness. 
.  .  .  The  intensely  theistic  character  of  the  philosophy 
of  Coleridge  is  rooted  and  grounded  in  the  Personal 
and  the  Spiritual,  and  not  in  the  least  in  the  Imper- 
sonal and  the  Natural.  Drawing  in  the  outset,  as  we 
have  remarked  above,  a  distinct  and  broad  line  between 
these  two  realms,  it  keeps  them  apart  from  each  other, 
by  affirming  a  difference  in  essence,  and  steadfastly  re- 
sists any  and  every  attempt  to  amalgamate  them  into 
one  sole  substance.  The  doctrine  of  creation,  and  not 
of  emanation  or  of  modification,  is  the  doctrine  by  which 
it  constructs  its  theory  of  the  Universe,  and  the  doc- 
trine of  responsible  self-determination,  and  not  of  irre- 
sponsible natural  development,  is  the  doctrine  by  which 
it  constructs  its  systems  of  Philosophy  and  Religion."  l 

1  Introductory  Essay  to  Coleridge's  Works,  vol.  i.,  pp.  35-36. 
31 


400  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

The  Platonic  portion  of  the  views  of  Coleridge  is 
more  apparent  in  his  theology  than  in  his  philosophy. 
In  his  Confession  of  Faith,  written  November  3,  1816, 
he  avows  his  adherence  to  some  of  the  prime  d  jctrines 
of  revealed  truth.  He  declares  his  free  agency ;  defines 
God  to  be  a  Being  in  whom  supreme  reason  and  a  most 
holy  will  are  one  with  infinite  power ;  acknowledges 
man's  fallen  nature,  that  he  is  "  born  a  child  of  wrath  ;" 
and  holds  Christ  Jesus  to  be  the  Word  which  was  with 
God  from  all  eternity,  assumed  human  nature  to  redeem 
man,  and  by  his  merits  secured  for  us  the  descent  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  and  the  impartation  of  his  free  grace.  In 
the  Preface  to  the  Aids  to  Reflection  he  thus  states  his 
object  in  writing  that  work :  "  To  exhibit  a  full  and 
consistent  scheme  of  the  Christian  Dispensation,  and 
more  largely  of  all  the  peculiar  doctrines  of  the  Chris- 
tian faith  ;  and  to  answer  all  the  objections  to  the  same, 
which  do  not  originate  in  a  corrupt  will  rather  than  an 
erring  judgment ;  and  to  do  this  in  a  manner  intelli- 
gible for  all  who,  possessing  the  ordinary  advantages 
of  education,  do  in  good  earnest  desire  to  form  their 
religious  creed  in  the  light  of  their  own  convictions,  and 
to  have  a  reason  for  the  faith  which  they  profess. 
There  are  indeed  mysteries,  in  evidence  of  which  no 
reasons  can  be  brought.  But  it  has  been  my  endeavor 
to  show  that  the  true  solution  of  the  problem  is,  that 
these  mysteries  are  reason,  reason  in  its  highest  form  of 
self-affirmation."  l 

The  distinctions  and  definitions  of  Coleridge  occa 
sion  the  most  serious  difficulty  in  the  study  of  his  opin- 
ions. His  mode  of  statement  more  frequently  than  his 
conception  subjects  him  to  the  charge  of  nationalism. 
His   life-long   error   of    mistaking   theology   for   rneta. 

1  Works,  vol.  i.,  p.  115. 


OPINIONS    OF    COLERIDGE.  461 

physics  resulted  in  his  application  of  philosophical  ter- 
minology to  theological  questions ;  but  making  every 
reasonable  allowance,  we  cannot  doubt  that  he  had 
defective  views  of  some  of  the  essential  truths  of  Chris- 
tianity. He  clothes  reason  with  authority  to  determine 
what  is  inspiration,  by  saying  that  there  can  be  no  reve- 
lation "  ab  extra?  Therefore,  every  man  should  decide 
for  himself  the  character  of  the  Scriptures.  The  power 
which  Coleridge  thus  places  in  the  hand  of  man  is 
traceable  to  his  distinction  between  reason  and  under- 
standing. He  makes  the  latter  the  logical,  and  the 
former  the  intuitive  faculty.  Even  beasts  possess  un- 
derstanding, but  reason,  the  gift  of  God  to  no  less  crea- 
ture than  man,  performs  the  functions  of  judgment  on 
supersensual  matters.  "  Reason,"  says  he,  "  is  the 
power  of  universal  and  necessary  convictions,  the  source 
and  substance  of  truths  above  sense,  and  having  their 
evidence  in  themselves."  x  This  admission  to  Rational- 
ism has  been  eagerly  seized  by  the  Coleridgean  school, 
and  elaborated  in  some  of  their  writings. 

Sin,  according  to  Coleridge,  is  not  guilt  in  the 
orthodox  sense.  When  Adam  fell  he  merely  turned 
his  back  upon  the  sun ;  dwelt  in  the  shadow ;  had 
God's  displeasure ;  was  stripped  of  his  supernatural 
endowments  ;  and  inherited  the  evils  of  a  sickly  body, 
and  a  passionate,  ignorant,  and  uninstructed  soul.  His 
sin  left  him  to  his  nature,  his  posterity  is  heir  to  his 
misfortunes,  and  what  is  every  man's  evil  becomes  all 
men's  greater  evil.  Each  one  has  evil  enough,  and  it  is 
hard  for  a  man  to  live  up  to  the  rule  of  his  own  reason 
and  conscience.2  Redemption  is  not  salvation  from  the 
curse  of  a  broken  law,  and  Christ  did  not  pay  a  debt 

1  Works,  p.  241.     The  full  argument  is  contained  on  pp.  241-253. 
■  Ibid.  vol.  i.,  pp.  269-271. 


46:3  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

for  man,  because  the  payer  must  have  incurred  the  debt 
himself.1  But  the  fruit  of  his  death  is  the  reconciliation 
of  man  to  God.  Man  will  have  a  future  life,  but  it  was 
not  the  specific  object  of  the  Christian  dispensation  to 
satisfy  his  understanding  that  he  will  live  hereafter ; 
neither  is  the  belief  of  a  future  state  or  the  rationality 
of  its  belief  the  exclusive  attribute  of  the  Christian 
religion,  but  a  fundamental  article  of  all  religion.2 

All  attempts  to  determine  the  exact  theological 
position  of  Coleridge  from  his  own  definitions  are  un- 
satisfactory. We  must  derive  his  real  convictions  from 
the  spirit  and  not  from  the  letter  of  his  works.  He 
was  devout  and  reverent,  never  prosecuting  his  investi- 
gations from  a  mere  love  of  speculation,  but  as  a  sincere 
inquirer  after  truth.  But  his  statements  have  had  their 
natural  result  in  producing  a  large  and  vigorous  school 
of  thinkers.  Never  bracing  himself  to  write  a  philo- 
sophical or  theological  system,  but  merely  stating  his 
views  in  aphoristic  form — as  in  the  Aids  to  Reflection 
— he  scattered  his  thoughts  as  a  careless  sower,  and  left 
them  to  germinate  in  the  public  mind.  But  many  of 
his  opinions  have  been  perverted,  and  speculations  have 
been  based  upon  them  by  numerous  admirers  who, 
proudly  claiming  him  for  authority,  thrust  upon  the 
world  those  sentiments  which  bear  less  the  impress  of 
the  master  than  the  counterfeit  of  the  weaker  disciple. 

A  large  cluster  of  important  and  familiar  names  ap- 
pears in  testimony  of  the  deep  and  immediate  impres- 
sion produced  by  the  opinions  of  Coleridge.  Julius 
Charles  Hare,  not  the  least  worthy  of  the  number,  has 
been  one  of  the  prominent  agents  in  communicating  to 
the  English  people  the  principles  of  that  thinker,  who 

1   WorTcs,  vol.  i.,  p.  308. 
8  Ibid,  p.  325. 


JULIUS    CHARLES    HARE.  463 

was  not  superior  to  him  in  moral  earnestness  and  pro- 
found reverence.  When  lecturing  as  Fellow  of  Trinity 
College,  Cambridge,  Hare  was  attentively  heard  by  John 
Sterling,  Maurice,  and  Trench.  He  drank  deeply  of 
the  spirit  of  Coleridge,  of  whom  he  was  ever  proud  to 
call  himself  a  "pupil,"  and  who,  in  connection  with 
Wordsworth,  was  the  instrumentality  by  which  he 
and  others  "were  preserved  from  the  noxious  taint  of 
Byron.1' x 

From  whatever  side  we  view  Hare's  life,  it  is  full 
of  interest.  When  very  young  he  traveled  on  the 
Continent,  and  became  delighted  with  the  literature  of 
Germany.  He  informs  us  that,  "in  1811  he  saw  the 
mark  of  Luther's  inkstand  on  the  walls  of  the  Castle 
of  Wartburg,  and  there  first  learned  to  throw  inkstands 
at  the  devil."  His  view  of  sacrifice  was  very  superfi- 
cial, and  similar  to  that  of  Maurice.  The  Jewish  offer- 
ings were  typical  "of  the  slaying  and  offering  up  of  the 
carnal  nature  to  God.  .  .  .  The  lesson  of  the 
cross  is  to  draw  nigh  to  God,  not  by  this  work  or  that 
work,  not  by  the  sacrifice  of  this  thing  or  that,  but  by 
the  entire  sacrifice  and  resignation  of  their  whole  being 
to  the  will  of  God." 2  Christ  did  not  perform  his  im- 
portant mission  so  much  by  his  death  as  by  his  entire 
life,  and  his  sufferings  were  only  the  completion  of  his 
task.  "  His  great  wTork  was  to  be  completed  and  made 
perfect,  as  every  truly  great  work  must  be,  by  suffering. 
For  no  work  can  be  really  great  unless  it  be  against 
the  course  of  the  world.  ...  It  was  by  losing  his 
own  life  in  every  possible  way — by  the  agony  in  the 
garden ;  by  the  flight  and  denial  of  those  whom  he  had 
chosen  out  of  the  world  to  be  His  companions  and 

1  Mission  of  the  Comforter.     Note  Sa. 

'  Sermons  on  the  Load  of  Self- Sacrifice,  and  the  Unity  of  the  Church. 


404  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

friends ;  by  the  mockery  and  cruelty  of  those  whom 
his  goodness  and  purity  rendered  more  bitter  against 
him ;  by  the  frantic  and  murderous  cries  of  the  people, 
whom  he  had  loaded  with  every  earthly  benefit,  and 
whom  he  desired  to  crown  with  eternal  blessirigs ;  and 
by  the  closing  sufferings  on  the  cross — that  Jesus  was 
to  gain  his  own  life,  and  the  everlasting  life  of  all  who 
will  believe  in  Him.  All  this,  then,  the  whole  work  of 
the  redemption  of  mankind,  does  our  Lord  in  the  text 
declare  to  be  finished.1 

Hare  declares  the  necessity  of  faith  to  Christian 
life,  but  he  renders  it  more  passive  than  active  by  say- 
ing that  it  is  a  receptive  moral  endowment  capable  of 
large  development.  Happy  is  the  man  who  becomes  in- 
ured to  the  exalted  "  habit  of  faith."  Sin  is  more  a 
matter  of  regret  than  of  responsibility ;  inspiration  is  a 
doctrine  we  should  not  slight,  but  the  language  of  the 
Scriptures  must  not  be  regarded  too  tenaciously ;  due  al- 
lowance ought  to  be  made  for  all  verbal  inaccuracies  and 
discrepancies ;  miracles  are  an  adjunct  to  Christian  evi- 
dence, but  their  importance  is  greatly  exaggerated,  for 
they  are  a  beautiful  frieze,  not  one  of  the  great  pillars 
in  the  temple  of  our  faith. 

Notwithstanding  these  evidences  of  Hare's  digres- 
sion from  orthodoxy,  we  cannot  forget  that  consecration 
and  purity  of  heart  revealed  in  some  of  his  sermons, 
and  especially  in  the  glowing  pages  of  the  Mission  of 
the  Comforter.  His  ministerial  life  was  an  example  of 
untiring  devotion,  and  we  know  not  which  to  admire 
the  more,  his  labor  of  love  in  the  rustic  parish  of  Herst- 
monceaux,  or  those  searching  rebukes  of  Romanism  con- 
tained in  the  charges  to  his  clergy.  Independent  as 
both  his  friends  and  enemies  acknowledge  him  to  have 

1  Sermon  on  John  xix.,  30. 


HARE    AXD    MAURICE.  465 

been,  his  misfortune  was  an  excessive  reliance  upon  his 
own  imagination  and  upon  the  opinions  of  those  whom 
he  admired.  Nature  made  him  capable  of  intimate 
friendships,  both  personal  and  intellectual.  No  one 
can  examine  his  life  without  loving  the  man,  nor  read 
his  fervent  words  without  concluding  that  the  Church 
has  been  honored  by  few  men  of  his  noble  type.  That 
self-sacrifice  and  sympathy  of  which  he  often  spoke  feel- 
ingly in  connection  with  the  humiliation  of  Christ, 
were  the  controlling  principles  of  his  heart.  Let  not 
the  veil  with  which  we  would  conceal  his  theological 
defects  obscure,  in  the  least,  the  brightness  of  his  res- 
splendent  character  and  pure  purposes. 

No  view  of  Hare's  position  can  be  complete  without 
embracing  that  of  his  brother-in-law,  Maurice ;  both  of 
whom  were  ardently  sympathetic  with  Coleridge.  But 
while  the  former  gave  a  more  evangelical  cast  to  his 
master's  opinions  than  they  originally  possessed,  the 
latter  perverted  them  by  unwarranted  speculations. 
Maurice  is  now  one  of  the  most  influential  of  the  Ra- 
tionalistic teachers  of  England.  He  has  not  employed 
himself,  like  Kingsley  and  others  of  the  Broad  Church, 
in  publishing  his  theological  sentiments  in  the  form  of 
religious  novels,  but  has  bad  the  commendable  frank- 
ness  to  state  his  opinions  without  circumlocution,  and  to 
furnish  us  with  his  creed  in  a  single  volume  of  essays.1 

Maurice's  notion  of  an  ideal  creation  betrays  the 
media  through  which  he  has  received  it, — from  Cole- 
ridge to  Neo-Platonism,  and  thence  to  Plato.  The  crea- 
tion  of  herbs,  flowers,  beasts,  birds,  and  fishes,  as  re- 
corded in  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis,  was  the  bringing 

1  Theological  Essays.  Second  Edition.  London,  1853.  Maurice  has 
published  thirty-four  works.  Vid.  Low's  English  Catalogue,  1835-1862, 
pp.  509-510. 


466  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

forth  of  kinds  and  orders,  such  as  they  were  according 
to  the  mind  of  God,  not  of  actual  separate  phenomenal 
existences,  such  as  they  present  themselves  to  the  senses 
of  man.1  The  creation  of  man  is  disposed  of  in  the  same 
ideal  way ;  so  that  we  are  inclined  to  ask  the  critic  if 
man  is  not,  after  all,  only  a  Platonic  idea  ?  "  What  I 
wish  you  particularly  to  notice,"  says  he,  "  is  that  the 
part  of  the  record  which  speaks  of  man  ideally,  accord- 
ing to  his  place  with  reference  to  God,  is  the  part  which 
expressly  belongs  to  the  history  of  creation  ;  that  the 
bringing  forth  of  man  in  this  sense,  is  the  work  of  the 
sixth  day.  .  .  .  Extend  this  thought,  which  seems 
to  rise  inevitably  out  of  the  story  of  the  creation  of  man, 
as  Moses  delivers  it,  to  the  seat  of  that  universe  of  which 
he  regards  man  as  the  climax,  and  we  are  forced  to  the 
conclusion  that  in  the  one  case,  as  in  the  other,  it  is  not 
the  visible,  material  thing  of  which  the  historian  is 
speaking,  but  that  which  lies  below  the  visible  material 
thing,  and  constitutes  the  substance  which  it  shows 
forth."2 

Maurice  assumes  also,  with  Neo-Platonism,  that  Christ 
is  the  archetype  of  every  human  being,  and  that  when 
a  man  becomes  pure,  he  is  only  developing  the  Christ 
who  was  within  him  already.  "The  Son  was  really  in 
Saul  of  Tarsus,  and  he  only  became  Paul  the  converted 
when  that  Son  was  revealed  in  him.  .  .  .  Christ  is 
in  every  man.  .  .  .  All  may  call  upon  God  as  a  rec- 
onciled Father.  Human  beings  are  redeemed,  not  in 
consequence  of  any  act  they  have  done,  of  any  faith 
they  have  exercised ;  their  faith  is  to  be  grounded  on  a 
foregone  conclusion  ;  their  acts  are  to  be  the  fruits  of  a 
Btate  they  already  possess."  3 

1  Lectures  on  the  Old  Testament,  p.  6. 

•  Ibid.  pp.  3-6. 

*  Unity  of  the  New  Testament.     Introduction,  pp  xxi.-xxri. 


OPINIONS    OF   MAL'EICE.  467 

From  this  premise  alone  the  theological  system  of 
Maurice  may  be  accurately  determined.  Sin  is  an  evil 
from  which  we  should  strive  to  effect  an  escape,  but  it  is 
nothing  more,  neither  guilt  nor  responsibility,  only  a 
condition  of  our  life  and  not  a  consequence  of  actual 
disobedience  of  God's  law,  or  the  effect  of  his  displeas- 
ure. Deep  below  it  there  is  a  righteousness  capable  of 
asserting  its  sovereignty.  Job  had  a  righteousness 
within  him,  which  led  him  to  say,  "  I  know  that  my 
Redeemer  liveth/'  Those  persons  who  prate  about  our 
miserable  condition  as  sinners,  "  have  a  secret  reserve 
of  belief  that  there  is  that  in  them  which  is  not  sin, 
which  is  the  very  opposite  of  sin.  .  .  .  Each  man 
has  got  this  sense  of  righteousness,  whether  he  realizes 
it  distinctly  or  indistinctly ;  whether  he  expresses  it 
courageously,  or  keeps  it  to  himself."  * 

The  nature  of  the  atonement,  Maurice  holds,  is  a  sub- 
ject of  misconception,  and  the  notions  of  it,  as  they  now 
obtain  in  Christendom,  darken  and  bewilder  the  mind. 
What  Christ  has  really  done  for  us  through  suffering  was 
his  matchless  sympathy ;  he  became  our  brother,  and 
was  not  our  mediatorial  substitute  but  a  natural  repre- 
sentative. On  this  ground,  a  regeneration  is  communi- 
cated to  all,  not  by  virtue  of  any  appropriating  faith, 
but  as  a  result  of  the  sympathetic  death  of  Christ.  The 
justification  of  humanity  has  been  secured  by  his  incar- 
nation, and  the  penalty  resulting  from  sin  is  a  mere  scar 
of  the  healed  wound.  Natural  death  is  not  the  separa- 
tion of  soul  and  body,  though  both  are  affected  by  it 
for  the  body  which  seems  to  die  is  only  the  corruptioi 
resulting  from  our  sins,  and  the  real  body  does  not  die. 
Hence,  there  can  never  be  any  general  resurrection  or 
judgment. 

1  Theological  Essays,  p.  61. 


168  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

It  is  astonishing  that  a  man  who  unhesitatingly  prop- 
agated these  views,  could  hold  any  office  within  the  pale 
of  the  Established  Church  ;  but  Maurice  enjoyed  high  fa- 
vor a  number  of  years  before  his  displacement.  Though 
commencing  life  as  a  Unitarian  and  Universalist,  he  was 
rapidly  promoted  by  the  ecclesiastical  authorities.  He 
took  no  pains  to  conceal  his  theological  opinions,  and 
yet  we  find  him  advancing  in  King's  College,  London1 
from  the  Professorship  of  English  Literature  to  that  of 
Ecclesiastical  History,  and  thence  to  the  Chair  of  Di- 
vinity. Some  time  elapsed  after  the  publication  of  the 
Essays  before  Dr.  Jelf,  Principal  of  the  College,  even 
read  them,  but  having  made  himself  acquainted  with 
their  contents,  a  correspondence  took  place  between  him 
and  Maurice.  The  result  was  that  the  Council  pro- 
nounced "  the  opinions  expressed,  and  the  doubts  indi- 
cated in  the  Essays,  and  the  correspondence  respecting 
future  punishments  and  the  final  issues  of  the  day  of 
judgment,  to  be  of  dangerous  tendency,  and  likely  to 
unsettle  the  minds  of  the  theological  students ;  and  fur- 
ther decide  that  his  continuance  as  Professor  would  be 
seriously  detrimental  to  the  interests  of  the  College."  l 
Maurice  afterward  held  the  office  of  Chaplain  to  Lin- 
coln's Inn,  but  in  1860  he  was  appointed  by  the  Queen 
to  the  district  church  of  Vere  St.  Marylebone. 

The  relations  of  Maurice  and  Kingsle}^  are  most  in- 
timate, for  besides  their  leadership  of  the  Broad 
Church,  they  are  the  exponents  of  the  so-called  Chris- 
tian Socialism. 

Charles  Kingsley  has  made  a  profound  impression 
upon  the  present  thought  and  life  of  England.  He 
betrays  his  martial  lineage  in  the  vigor  of  his  pen, 
and  in  that  unswerving  purpose  to  counteract  what,  in 

1  The  date  of  this  Sentence  was  Oct.  28th,  1853. 


klngsley's  opinions.  469 

nis  opinion,  are  serious  barriers  to  the  progress  of  the 
age.  That  he  should  entertain  sympathy  with  Cole- 
ridge might  be  expected  from  the  very  cast  of  his 
mind,  but  his  adoption  of  such  a  large  proportion  of  that 
thinker's  sentiments  may  be  due  to  his  private  education 
under  the  care  of  Derwent  Coleridge,  son  of  the  phi- 
losopher. Though  only  forty-six  years  old,  twenty  of 
which  have  been  passed  in  the  rectorship  of  Eversley, 
an  enumeration  of  his  works  shows  him  to  have  written 
theology,  philosophy,  poetry,  and  romance.  But  his 
publications  betray  unity  of  purpose.  Instead  of  suf- 
fering Christianity  to  be  a  dead  weight  upon  society, 
he  would  adapt  it  to  the  wants  of  the  masses.  He 
holds  that  when  the  adaptation  becomes  thorough, 
when,  by  any  means,  the  people  can  be  made  to  grasp 
Christianity,  the  reflexive  influence  will  be  so  great  as 
to  elevate  them  to  a  point  unthought  of  by  the  slug- 
gish Church.  But  what  is  the  Christianity  which 
Kingsley  would  incorporate  into  the  life  of  society  ? 
Upon  the  answer  to  this  inquiry  depends  the  difference 
between  him  and  evangelical  theologians. 

The  advocates  of  orthodoxy  maintain  that  Chris- 
tianity is  a  remedial  dispensation,  introduced  to  meet  an 
evil  which  could  not  be  counteracted  by  any  other 
agency,  human  or  divine  ;  but  with  Kingsley  it  is  only 
the  outward  exhibition  of  what  had  ever  existed  in  a 
concealed  state.  Man  has  always  been  one  with  the 
Word,  or  Son  of  God,  and,  by  virtue  of  the  nature  of 
each,  they  are  in  perfect  union.  Christ  manifested  the 
union  first  when  he  appeared  on  earth  in  the  incarnate 
state,  since  he  came  to  declare  to  men  that  they  were 
not  estranged  from  him,  but  had  always  been,  and  still 
were,  in  harmony  with  him.  Men  are  not  craven  enemies 
of  God,  which  error  a  harsh  theology  would  make  them 


i70  H1ST0EI    OF   RATIONALISM. 

believe.  They  are  his  friends,  for  Christ  regarded  them 
complacently  as  such  ;  and  the  atonement  must  not  be 
deemed  the  reconciliation  of  sinful  humanity  and  angry 
Deity,  but  as  the  first  manifestation  of  an  ever-existing 
unity  of  the  two  parties.  We  need  not  pass  through 
the  long  ordeal  of  repentance  to  be  placed  in  the  rela- 
tion of  sons ;  because  we  are  all  by  nature  "  members 
of  Christ,  children  of  God,  and  inheritors  of  the  King- 
dom of  Heaven."  * 

The  Church,  according  to  Kingsley,  is  the  world  in 
a  certain  aspect.  "  The  world,1'  says  an  English  writer, 
in  stating  Kingsley's  opinion,  "is  called  the  Church 
when  it  recognizes  its  relation  to  God  in  Christ,  and  acta 
accordingly.  The  Church  is  the  world  lifting  itself  up 
into  the  sunshine  ;  the  world  is  the  Church  falling  into 
shadow  and  darkness.  When  and  where  the  light  and 
life  that  are  in  the  world  break  out  into  bright,  or 
noble,  or  holy  word  or  deed,  then  and  there  the  world 
shows  that  the  nature  and  glory  of  the  Church  live 
within  it.  Every  man  of  the  world  is  not  only  poten- 
tially, but  virtually  a  member  of  Christ's  Church,  what- 
ever may,  for  the  present,  be  his  character  or  seeming. 
Like  the  colors  in  shot  silk,  or  on  a  dove's  neck,  the  dif- 
ference of  hue  and  denomination  depends  merely  upon 
the  degree  of  light,  and  the  angle  of  vision.  In  con- 
formity with  this  principle,  Mr.  Kingsley's  theology  al- 
together secularizes  the  Kingdom  of  Christ."  2 

Kingsley's  views  of  the  offices  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
indicate  a  decided  approbation  of  the  pantheistic  theory. 
The  third  person  of  the  Trinity  operates  not  only  upon 

1  Sermons  on  National  Subjects.     First  Series,    p.  14.     London  Edition. 

8  Modern  Anglican  Theology.  By  the  Rev.  J.  H.  Rigg.  Second  Edi- 
tion. London,  1859.  The  student  of  contemporary  theology  will  find  this 
work  the  best  summary  of  the  opinions  of  Coleridge  and  his  school. 


kingsley's  humanitarian  efforts.  471 

man,  but  through  him  upon  the  secular  and  intellectual 
life  of  the  world.  Poetry,  romance,  and  each  act  of 
induction,  are  the  work  of  the  Spirit,  whose  agency 
secures  all  the  material  and  scientific  growth  of  the 
world.  Without  that  power,  the  car  of  progress, 
whether  in  letters,  mechanics,  or  ethics,  must  stop. 

Kingsley  would  elevate  the  degraded  portion  of  the 
race  until  the  lowest  member  be  made  to  feel  the  trans- 
muting agency  of  Christianity.  He  was  first  led  into 
sympathy  with  the  poor  operatives  in  the  English  fac- 
tories by  reading  Mayhew's  Sketches  of  London  Labor 
2nd  London  Poor,  and,  in  connection  with  Maurice,  or- 
ganized cooperative  laboring  associations  as  a  check  to 
the  crushing  system  of  competitive  labor.  Their  plans 
succeeded,  and  many  abject  working  men  have  been 
brought  into  a  higher  social  and  moral  condition  than 
they  had  hitherto  enjoyed.  These  humanitarian  efforts 
have  attracted  large  numbers  to  the  reception  of  the 
tenets  entertained  by  those  putting  them  forth.  "  For," 
the  unthinking  say,  "  if  the  opinions  of  these  men  will 
lead  them  to  labor  on  this  wise  for  the  social  elevation 
of  our  fellow-beings,  they  must  needs  be  correct,  and  if 
so,  worthy  of  our  reception."  But  if  Neo-Platonism  can 
make  Maurices,  Kingsley s,  and  a  whole  school  of  "  Mus- 
cular Christians "  and  "  Christian  Socialists,"  nothing 
less  than  the  pure  religion  of  Christ  can  raise  up 
Howards,  Wilberforces,  and  Budgetts. 

The  philosopher  has  always  exerted  a  great  power 
upon  those  who  do  not  philosophize.  He  is  regarded 
by  many  as  the  inhabitant  of  a  sphere  which  few  can 
enter,  and  his  dictates  are  heard  as  fiats  of  a  rightful 
ruler.  Those  who  cannot  understand  him  fully  often 
congratulate   themselves    that    the   few    unmistakable 


472  HISTORY    OF   RATIO NALItiAL 

grains  they  have  gathered  from  his  opinions  are  nuggets 
of  pure  gold,  and  entitled  to  the  merit  of  becoming  the 
world's  currency.  The  philosopher  is  not  his  own  in- 
terpreter. There  has  seldom  been  one  who  knew  how 
to  tell  his  thoughts  to  the  masses.  That  is  the  province 
of  the  popular  writers  who  have  adopted  his  opinions, 
and  know  how  to  deal  them  out  almost  imperceptibly 
in  the  form  of  poetry  and  fiction.  One  great  philo- 
sophical mind  has  sometimes  dictated  the  literature  of 
generations,  and,  in  earlier  periods,  of  entire  centuries. 

This  influence  of  philosophy  on  literature. is  fur- 
nished with  a  new  illustration  at  the  present  day; 
some  of  the  most  popular  and  attractive  writers  of 
Great  Britain  have  extracted  their  opinions  from  one 
or  more  of  the  later  philosophers  of  Germany,  and  in- 
corporated them  into  current  poetry,  romance,  and  his- 
tory. The  effect  has  been  to  furnish  the  people  with  a 
literature  which  possesses  all  the  weight  of  vital  reli- 
gious truth  in  the  minds  of  those  readers  who  prefer 
to  derive  their  creed  from  some  enchanter  in  letters  to 
seeking  it  immediately  from  the  Bible  or  its  most  re- 
liable interpreters. 

The  department  of  literature  in  question  inculcates 
as  its  cardinal  principle  that  man  is  unconscious  of  his 
power,  he  can  do  what  seems  impossible,  does  not 
worship  his  fellows  enough,  is  purer  than  his  clerical 
leaders  would  have  him  imagine,  and  ought,  like 
certain  of  his  predecessors,  to  arouse  to  lofty  efforts, 
assert  his  dignity  and  divinity,  and  strive  to  ad 
vance  the  world  to  its  proper  glory  and  perfection. 
The  authors  of  these  exciting  and  flattering  appeals  do 
not  surround  their  theory  with  proper  safeguards,  nor 
do  they  tell  the  world  that  they  have  served  up  a  de- 
lectable  dish   of    Pantheism   for   popular   deglutition 


THOMAS    CARLTLE.  473 

The  case  is  stated  clearly  by  one  who  understands  the 
danger  of  this  tendency,  and  whose  pen  has  already  been 
powerful  in  exposing  its  absurdity.  u  In  our  general 
literature,"  says  Bayne,  "  the  principle  we  have  enunci- 
ated undergoes  modification,  and,  for  the  most  part,  is 
by  no  means  expressed  as  pantheism.  We  refer  to  that 
spirit  of  self-assertion,  which  lies  so  deep  in  what  may 
be  called  the  religion  of  literature,  to  that  wide-spread 
tendency  to  regard  all  reform  of  the  individual  man  as 
beinir  an  evolution  of  some  hidden  nobleness,  or  an 
appeal  to  a  perfect  internal  light  or  law,  together  with 
what  may  be  called  the  worship  of  genius,  the  habit  of 
nourishing  all  hope  on  the  manifestation  of  the 
divine,  by  gifted  individuals.  We  care  not  how  this 
last  remarkable  characteristic  of  the  time  be  defined; 
to  us  its  connection  with  pantheism,  and  more  or  less 
close  dependence  on  the  teaching  of  that  of  Germany, 
seem  plain,  but  it  is  enough  that  we  discern  in  it  an 
influence  definably  antagonistic  to  the  spirit  of  Chris- 
tianity." 1 

The  parentage  of  literary  Rationalism  in  England 
is  attributable  to  Thomas  Carlyle.  Having  "  found  his 
soul "  in  the  philosophy  of  Germany,  we  hear  him,  in 
1827,  defending  the  criticism  of  Kant  as  "  distinctly  the 
greatest  intellectual  achievement  of  the  century  in 
which  it  came  to  light."  But  the  opinions  of  Fichte 
and  Richter  have  subsequently  had  more  weight  with 
Carlyle,  and  he  has  elaborated  them  in  many  forms. 
Fichte,  in  particular,  has  influenced  him  to  adopt  a 
theory  which  gives  a  practical  denial  to  the  Scriptural 
declarations  of  the  fallen  state  of  humanity.  Effort 
being  goodness,  the  exterior  world  is  only  tolerable  be 
cause  it  furnishes  an  arena  for  the   contest   of  work 

1  Christian  Life,  p.  14.     American  Edition. 


4:74  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Man  will  never  receive  any  prize  unless  he  bestir  him 
self  to  the  exercise  of  his  own  omnipotence.     Individual 
life  is  all  the  real  life  possessed  by  this  world,  and  it  is 
gifted  with   a   spiritual  wand   capable  of  calling   up 
wondrous  forms  of  beauty  and  worth.     It  matters  not 
so  much  what  man  works  for,  since  his  effort  is  the  im- 
portant matter.     All  ages  have  had  a  few  true  men. 
The  assertion   of   self-hood  constitutes   greatness;  and 
Zoroaster,  Cromwell,  Julius  Caesar,  and   Frederic   the 
Great ;  heroes  of  any  creed  or  no  creed,  Pagan  or  Jew, 
are  the  world's  worthies,  its  great  divinities.     Men  need 
not  be  conscious  that  they  are  doing  great  deeds  while 
in  the  act,  nor,  when  the  work  is  accomplished,  that 
they  have  performed  anything  worthy  a   school-boy's 
notice.     On  the  other  hand,  worth  is  tested  by  actual 
unconsciousness,  "  which  teaches  that  all  self-knowledge 
is  a  curse,  and  introspection  a  disease ;  that  the  true 
health  of  a  man  is  to  have  a  soul  without  being  aware 
0f  it, — to  be  disposed  of  by  impulses  which  he  never 
criticises, — to  fling  out  the  products  of  creative  genius 
without  looking  at  them." 

Man  is  the  centre  of  the  universe,  which  is  every- 
where clothed  with  life.  His  is  a  spiritual  power 
capable  of  effecting  the  great  transformations  needed 
by  his  fellows.  Let  him  be  earnest,  then,  and  evolve 
the  fruits  of  his  wonderful  strength.  Since  his  mission 
is  work,  here  is  Carlyle's  gospel  which  calls  him  to  it : 
"  Work  is  of  a  religious  nature ;  all  true  work  is  sacred  ; 
in  all  true  work,  were  it  but  true  hand-labor,  there  is 
something  of  divineness.  Labor,  wide  as  the  earth,  has 
its  summit  in  heaven.  Sweat  of  the  brow;  and  up 
from  that  to  the  sweat  of  the  brain,  sweat  of  the  heart ; 
which  includes  all  Kepler  calculations,  Newton  medita- 
tions, all  sciences,  all  spoken  epics,  all  acted  heroisms, 


carlyle's  philosophy.  475 

martyrdoms, — up  to  that  '  Agony  of  bloody  sweat,' 
which  all  men  have  called  divine !  O  brother,  if  this 
is  not  '  worship,'  then  I  say  the  more  pity  for  worship ; 
for  this  is  the  noblest  thing  yet  discovered  under  God's 
sky.''  Work  implies  power,  and  power  in  the  individ- 
ual is  what  society  needs  to  keep  it  within  proper 
bounds.  Social  life  requires  the  will  of  the  single  mind 
and  hand ;  republicanism  is  therefore  the  dream  of 
fanatics,  and  ought  not  to  be  tolerated  anywhere.  Pop- 
ular rights  are  a  fiction  which  the  strong  hand  ought 
to  dissipate  at  a  thrust.  The  greatest  men  are  the 
greatest  despots,  and  the  exercise  of  their  unlimited 
authority  is  what  entitles  them  to  our  worship.  Napo- 
leon III.  preaches  the  pure  gospel  of  politics  in  his 
Life  of  Julius  Cce-sar.  Absolute  subjection — call  it 
slavery,  if  you  please — is  the  proper  state  of  large 
bodies  of  helpless  humanity,  who  are  absolutely  de- 
pendent upon  some  master  of  iron  will  for  guidance 
and  development. 

Such  being  Carlyle's  view  of  human  rights,  it  is  not 
surprising  that  he  has  applauded  the  most  gigantic 
effort  in  history  to  establish  a  government  upon  the 
system  of  human  bondage.  But  all  slavery  will  by 
and  by  vanish  like  the  tobacco-smoke  of  "  Teufels- 
drockh."  Part  of  the  world's  best  work  will  be  the 
unceasing  effort  for  its  universal  and  perpetual  extermi- 
nation ;  and  posterity  will  honor  those  who  labor  for 
this  consummation  as  greater  benefactors  and  workers 
than  all  the  divinities  idolized  by  the  author  of  Sartor 
Resartus  and  the  Life  of  Frederic  tlie  Great. 

While  Carlyle's  system  does  not  appear  to  flatter 
humanity  its  effect  is  of  that  character.  He  would 
make  his  readers  believe  that  they  are  pure,  great, 
and  capable  beings  like  those  deified  by  him.    The  adu 


476  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

latioQ  being  too  great  for  many  who  peruse  his  pages; 
large  numbers  of  readers  are  led  into  dangerous  vagaries. 
"  The  influence  of  Carlyle's  writings,"  says  an  essayist, 
"  and  especially  of  his  Sartor  Resartus,  has  been 
primarily  exerted  on  classes  of  men  most  exposed  to 
temptations  of  egotism  and  petulance,  and  least  sub- 
jected to  anything  above  them, — academics,  artists,  lit- 
terateurs, strong-minded  women,  '  debating '  youths, 
Scotchmen  of  the  phrenological  grade,  and  Irishmen  of 
the  young-Ireland  school."  *  There  are  very  many  be- 
side this  grotesque  group,  who  exclaim,  with  one  of  his 
warmest  admirers,  "  Carlyle  is  my  religion !  "  There 
are  others  again  who  say  gratefully  what  John  Sterling 
wrote  him  in  his  last  brief  letter,  "  Towards  me  it  is 
still  more  true  than  towards  England  that  no  man  has 
been  and  done  like  you."  2 

The  time  has  not  yet  come  when  men  can  awake 
from  the  spell  of  a  charmer  like  Carlyle.  But  the  illu- 
sion will  some  day  be  dissipated,  and  many  of  his  readers 
in  Great  Britain  and  America  will  feel  deeply  and  al- 
most despairingly  that,  in  the  original  fountain  of  his 
teaching,  there  was  "  a  poison-drop  which  killed  the 
plants  it  was  expected  to  nourish,  and  left  a  sterile  waste 
where  men  looked  for  the  bloom  and  the  opulence  of  a 
garden  of  God."  It  behooves  those  who  idolize  him  to 
examine  the  image  before  which  they  stand.  He  is  a 
man  of  unquestioned  boldness  and  some  originality, 
and  no  one  of  the  present  generation  has  greater  power 
to  dazzle  and  bewilder  the  young.  Happily,  age  brings 
with  it  the  clearing  up  of  much  of  the  obscurity  of 
youth,  and  on  the  additional  light  of  increasing  years 
we  depend  for  the  illumination  of  many  a  mind  ob- 

1  National  Review,  Oct.  1856. 

2  Life  of  Sterling,  p.  334. 


THE    WESTMINSTER    REVIEW.  477 

*cured  by  his  sentiments.  The  late  R.  A.  Vaughan,  a 
careful  observer  of  the  tendencies  of  English  thought, 
says  :  "  It  may  not  be  nattering  to  Mr.  Carlyle,  but  we 
believe  it  to  be  true  that  by  far  the  larger  portion  of 
the  best  minds,  whose  early  youth  his  writings  have 
powerfully  influenced,  will  look  back  upon  the  period 
of  such  subjection  as  the  most  miserably  morbid  period 
of  their  life.  On  awaking  from  such  delirium  to  the 
sane  and  healthful  realities  of  manful  toil,  they  will  dis- 
cover the  hollowness  of  that  sneering,  scowling,  wailing, 
declamatory,  egotistical,  and  bombastic  misanthropy, 
which,  in  the  eye  of  their  unripe  judgment,  wore  the 
air  of  a  philosophy  so  profound."  l  The  time  will  also 
come  when  Carlyle  will  be  revealed  to  all  in  his  true 
character :  as  the  theologian  preaching  a  pagan  creed ; 
as  the  philosopher  emasculating  the  German  philosophy 
which  he  scrupled  not  to  borrow ;  as  the  stylist  pervert- 
ing the  pure  English  of  Milton  and  Shakspeare  into 
inflated,  oracular  Richterisms;  and  as  the  arch  dema- 
gogue who,  despising  the  people  at  heart,  assigned  no 
bounds  to  his  ambition  to  gain  their  hearing  and  cajole 
them  into  the  reception  of  his  unmixed  Pantheism. 

The  periodical  press  has  been  a  successful  agency  in 
the  dissemination  of  literary  Rationalism  throughout 
the  British  Islands.  Years  before  the  recent  discussions 
sprang  up,  the  Westminster  Review  was  the  ablest  and 
most  avowed  of  all  the  advocates  of  the  "  liberal  theol- 
ogy "  of  the  Continent.  It  still  rules  without  a  rival. 
Emboldened  by  the  late  accession  of  sympathizers,  it 
opposes  orthodoxy  and  the  Church  with  an  arrogance 
equal  to  that  of  the  Universal  German  Library,  whose 
editor,  Nicolai,  is  reported  to  have  said :  "  My  object  is 
merely  to  hold  up  to  the  laughter  and  contempt  of  the 

1  Essays  and  Remains,  vol.  i.,  pp.  7-8. 


478  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

public  the  orthodox  and  hypocritical  clergy  of  the 
Protestant  church,  and  to  show  that  they  make  their 
own  bad  cause  the  cause  of  their  office  and  of  religion, 
or  rather  that  of  Almighty  God  himself, — to  show  that 
when  they  make  an  outcry  about  prevailing  errors,  in 
ndelity,  and  blasphemy,  they  are  only  speaking  of  their 
own  ignorance,  hypocrisy,  and  love  of  persecution,  of 
the  wickedness  of  their  own  hearts  concealed  under  the 
mantle  of  piety."  l 

From  its  character  as  a  quarterly  publication,  the 
Westminster  Review  has  the  constant  opportunity  to 
reply  to  every  new  work  of  Christian  apology,  and  to 
elaborate  each  new  heresy  of  the  Rationalistic  thinkers. 
Assuming  a  thoroughly  negative  position,  it  repels  every 
tendency  toward  a  higher  type  of  piety,  and  retards,  as 
far  as  it  can,  the  popular  acceptance  of  the  doctrines  of 
Christianity.  Its  attacks  on  the  sanctity  of  the  Sab- 
bath are  bold,  and  carefully  designed  to  affect  popular 
sentiment.  It  gives  its  support  to  the  fatal  theories  of 
Sociology,  a  system  which  holds  "  that  so  uniform  are 
the  operations  of  motives  upon  the  actions  of  men  that 
social  regulations  may  be  reduced  to  an  exact  science, 
and  society  be  organized  to  a  perfect  model."  It  thus 
commits  itself  to  the  position  that  all  history  takes  place 
by  force  of  necessity. 

The  Westminster  Review  studiously  opposes  the 
orthodox  view  of  inspiration,  miracles,  the  atonement, 
and  the  Biblical  ao;e  of  the  world  and  of  man.  It  in- 
dorses  the  sentiments  of  the  Tubingen  school,  and  holds 
with  Baur  that  if  we  would  know  the  truth  of  the 
early  Church,  its  entire  apostolic  history  must  be  recon- 
structed. It  is  compelled  to  confess  the  recent  advance 
of  evangelical  doctrines  in  the  German  mind,  but  sees 

1  Sebaldus  Nothanker.     Second  Edition.     1774. 


LAMENT    OF   THE    WESTMINSTER    REVIEW.  479 

only  evil  in  the  fact,  and  utters  this  jereniiade  :  "  This 
church  sentiment,  which  has  seized  upon  the  whole 
of  the  noblesse  in  North  Germany  is  becoming  every 
year  the  sentiment  of  the  clergy.  The  theological  radi- 
calism of  the  last  period  is  now  quite  a  thing  of  the 
past.  The  present  is  an  epoch  of  restoration.  Scientific 
criticism  has  no  longer  any  interest ;  it  is,  who  can  be 
most  orthodox,  and  reproduce  more  precisely  the  ideas 
of  the  sixteenth  century.  As  the  scientific  and  critical 
school  is  defunct,  the  mediation-theology,  whose  busi- 
ness was  to  compromise  between  the  results  of  learning 
and  the  principles  of  orthodoxy,  is  necessarily  in  a  state 
of  decay.  Its  occupation  is  gone.  This  school  of  theo- 
logians, which  numbers  in  its  ranks  some  of  the  most 
respectable  names  in  Germany,  and  which  traces  its 
origin  to  Schleiermacher,  can  scarcely  be  said  now  to 
make  head  against  the  sweeping  current  of  Pharisaical 
orthodoxy.  Some  of  its  older  representatives  have  been 
withdrawn  from  the  scene  either  by  age  or  death ; 
others  have  followed  the  multitude,  and  conformed  to 
the  reigning  '  churchmanship.'  It  is  the  old  story 
enacted  in  the  Catholic  revival  of  the  end  of  the  six- 
teenth century,  and  at  other  times  before  and  since. 
The  reactionary  clergy  have  succeeded  in  getting  them- 
selves regarded  as  the  Swiss  Guard  of  the  throne. 
They  stand  between  Royalty  and  Revolution.  All  the 
places  in  the  gift  of  the  crown — and  all  the  places  are 
in  the  gift  of  the  crown — are  filled  on  party  considera- 
tions. Learning  goes  for  nothing.  Thus  inferior  men 
are  elevated  to  a  platform  from  which  they  deliver  their 
dicta  with  authority,  and  ignorance  can  contradict 
knowledge  at  an  advantage.  The  mutual  understand- 
ing among  the  party  enables  them  to  puff  each  other's 


480  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

books,  and  run  down  their  opponents.     Only  learning 
can  get  no  hearing."  * 

A  number  of  writers  have  been  furnished  with  a 
creed  by  the  literature  of  which  we  have  spoken,  and 
are  now  endeavoring  to  teach  it  to  the  people.  Their 
system  has  many  names,  among  which  are,  Positivism, 
Secularism,  and  Socialism.  Consummate  shrewdness  is 
exhibited  in  its  presentation  to  the  people, "  the  children 
of  this  world"  sustaining  their  old  reputation  for  superior 
wisdom.  The  circulating  libraries  abound  in  its  books, 
and  the  newspaper  and  six-penny  pamphlet  are  used 
as  instruments  for  its  wider  dissemination. 

The  Protestant  church  of  Great  Britain  has  no  time 
for  idleness,  and  cannot  afford  to  waste  any  truth- 
power  while  so  many  enemies  are  assailing  its  walls. 
When  the  crisis  shall  have  passed  it  will  be  seen  that 
not  a  superfluous  hand  was  lifted  in  the  combat.  What 
British  and  American  Protestantism  needs  to-day  is  not 
a  class  of  discoverers  of  new  truth,  but  that  the  defend 
ers  of  the  old  truth,  availing  themselves  of  every  new 
step  of  science  and  criticism,  be  chivalric  in  opposing 
their  adversaries,  and  watchful  of  the  interests  which 
God  has  placed  in  their  keeping. 

1  Ootober  Number.  1868. 


CHAPTER    XXI. 

ENGLAND    CONTINUED:      CRITICAL   RATIONALISM— JO WETT. 
THE  ESSAYS  AND  REVIEWS,  AND  COLENSO. 

The  devout  disciple  of  Christ  regards  the  Scriptures 
with  profound  reverence,  for  they  contain  the  doctrines 
which  show  him  his  path  to  the  pure  life  of  heaven. 
His  theological  opponents  are  not  blind  to  this  attach- 
ment, nor  are  they  ignorant  of  the  service  of  the  Bible 
in  supporting  the  entire  Christian  system.  It  could  not 
therefore  be  expected  that,  while  literature  and  philos 
ophy  were  affected  by  Rationalism,  the  Scriptures 
should  escape  with  impunity.  There  lies  a  deep  d 
structive  purpose  beneath  the  brief  utterance  of  Dr 
Temple  :  "  The  immediate  work  of  our  day  is  the  study 
of  the  Bible.1  "  The  Critical  Rationalism  of  England 
which  is  now  attracting  the  attention  of  the  civilized 
world  is  of  recent  growth,  but  the  energy  with  which 
it  has  been  cultivated  is  unsurpassed  in  the  annals  of 
skepticism. 

Professor  Jowett's  commentary  on  the  Epistles  to 
Thessalonians,  Galatians,  and  Romans,  was  published 
in  1855.  Coming  from  a  highly  respectable  source,  and 
assailing  the  doctrines  of  revelation  boldly,  it  was  a 
clear  indication  of  what  might  be  expected  from  the 
Critical  Rationalists  as  a  class. 

'  Essays  and  Reviews.    Edited,  with  an  Introduction,  by  Rev.  F.  H, 
Hedge,  D.  D.     Boston,  1862. 


482  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

The  doctrine  of  the  atonement,  according  to  this 
writer,  is  involved  in  perplexities  whose  growth  is  of 
more  than  a  thousand  years.  Christ  did  not  die  to  ap- 
pease the  divine  wrath,  and  "  sacrifice"  and  "  atonement'1 
were  accommodated  terms  used  by  the  apostles  because 
they  had  been  reared  among  the  Jewish  offerings  and 
were  familiar  with  them.  The  great  advantage  we  de- 
rive from  Christ  is  his  life,  in  which  we  behold  a  perfect 
harmony  of  nature,  absolute  self-renunciation,  pure  love, 
and  resignation.  We  know  nothing  of  the  objective 
act  on  God's  part  by  which  he  reconciled  the  world  to 
himselfj  the  very  description  of  it  being  a  figure  of 
speech.  Conversion  is  not  in  accordance  with  the 
claims  of  orthodoxy,  for  while  there  were  conver- 
sions in  the  early  Church,  there  is  no  possibility  of 
establishing  a  harmony  between  them  and  those  which 
are  now  said  to  occur.  The  conversions  of  the  first 
Christains  were  marked  by  ecstatic  and  unusual  phenom- 
ena, whole  multitudes  were  simultaneously  affected,  and 
the  changes  wrought  were  permanent;  but  the  subjects 
were  chiefly  ignorant  people,  who  no  doubt  did  many 
things  which  would  have  been  distasteful  to  us  as  men 
of  education.1 

The  most  noteworthy  work  of  the  Critical  Rational- 
ists is  the  Ms-says  and  Reviews  (1861),  a  volume  which 
consists  of  broad  generalizations  against  the  authority 
of  the  Bible  as  a  standard  of  faith. 

I.  The  Education  of  the  World.  By  Frederic  Tern 
pie,  D.  D.  There  is  a  radical  difference  between  man 
and  inanimate  nature.  The  latter  is  passive,  and  sub- 
ject to  the  workings  of  the  vast  physical  machinery,  but 
man  is  at  no  time  stationary,  for  he  develops  from  age 
to  age,  and  concentrates  in  his  history  the  results  and 

1  Commentary  on  St.  PauVs  Epistles. — Noyes1  Essays,  pp.  222-276. 


DR.    TEMPLES    ESSAY.  488 

achievements  of  all  previous  history.  There  is  no  real 
difference  between  the  capacity  of  men  now  and  that  of 
the  antediluvian  world ;  the  ground  of  disparity  lies  in 
the  time  of  development  afforded  the  present  generation. 
Thus  a  child  of  twelve  stands  at  present  where  once 
stood  the  full-grown  man. 

There  are  three  stages  in  the  world's  development : 
Childhood,  Youth,  Maturity.  Childhood  requires  posi- 
tive rules,  and  is  made  subject  to  them;  youth  is  gov- 
erned by  the  force  of  example  ;  and  manhood,  being  free 
from  external  restraints,  must  be  its  own  instructor. 
We  have  first  rules,  then  examples,  and  last  princi- 
ples : — the  Law,  the  Son  of  Man,  and  the  Gift  of  the 
Spirit.  The  world  was  once  a  child,  under  tutors  and 
governors  until  the  time  appointed  by  the  Father.  Af- 
terwards, when  the  fit  season  had  arrived,  the  Example, 
to  which  all  ages  should  turn,  was  sent  to  teach  men  wThat 
they  ought  to  be ;  and  the  human  race  was  left  to  itself 
to  be  guided  by  the  instruction  of  the  Spirit  within.1  The 
world,  before  the  time  of  Christ,  was  in  its  childhood, 
when  commands  were  given  without  explanation.  The 
pre-Christian  world,  being  in  its  state  of  discipline  and 
childhood,  was  divided  into  four  classes :  the  Roman, 
the  Greek,  the  Asiatic,  and  the  Hebrew,  each  of  which 
contributed  something  toward  the  world's  improvement 
and  its  preparation  for  the  age  of  Example.  The  He- 
brew did  the  most,  though  his  work  was  of  the  same 
class  and  aimed  at  the  same  result.  The  Roman  gave  an 
iron  will ;  the  Greek,  a  cultivated  reason  and  taste  ;  the 
Asiatic,  the  idea  of  immortality,  and  spiritual  imagina 
tion ;  and  the  Hebrew,  the  trained  conscience. 

The  whole  period  from  the  close  of  the  old  Testa- 
ment to  the  termination  of  the  New  was  the  time  of  the 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  pp.  5-6. 


4-84  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

world's  youth,  the  age  of  examples.1  Christ  came  just 
at  the  right  time ;  if  he  had  waited  until  the  present 
age  his  incarnation  would  have  been  misplaced,  and 
we  could  not  recognize  his  divinity  ;  for  the  faculty  of 
faith  has  turned  inwards,  and  cannot  now  accept  any 
outward  manifestations  of  the  truth  of  God.2 

The  present  age  is  that  of  independent  reflection  and 
the  supremacy  of  conscience — the  world's  manhood 
Laws  and  examples  are  absolute,  and  should  be  forgot- 
ten, just  as  we  look  lightly  upon  the  things  of  our  child- 
hood. The  world  has  arrived  at  its  present  exalted 
state  through  a  severe  ordeal,  but  the  grandeur  of  ita 
position  is  sufficient  to  make  it  forget  its  trials.  "  The 
spirit  or  conscience  [which  are  terms  for  reason]  comes 
to  full  strength  and  assumes  the  throne  intended  for  him 
in  the  soul.  As  an  accredited  judge,  invested  with  fall 
powers,  he  sits  in  the  tribunal  of  our  inner  kingdom, 
decides  upon  the  past,  and  legislates  upon  the  future, 
without  appeal  except  to  himself.  He  decides  not  by 
what  is  beautiful  or  noble,  or  soul-inspiring,  but  by  what 
is  right.  Gradually  he  frames  his  code  of  laws,  revising, 
adding,  abrogating,  as  a  wiser  and  deeper  experience 
gives  him  clearer  light.  He  is  the  third  great  teacher 
and  the  last." 3 

In  some  aspects  this  essay  is  the  least  objectionable 
in  the  volume.  Yet  it  contains  radical  errors  which  many 
a  reader  would  accept  without  suspicion.  The  agency 
of  the  Holy  Spirit  in  revelation  is  ignored,  and  the  de- 
velopment through  which  the  world  has  passed  is  con- 
founded with  civilization.  This  development  is  alleged  to 
have  occured  in  a  purely  natural  way,  the  Hebrew 
type  being  no  more  a  divine  appointment  than  that  of 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  37. 

1  Ibid.  p.  39.         8  Tbid.  pp.  35-36. 


DR.    WILLIAMS     ESSAY.  485 

the  Grecian  or  Roman.  The  doctrines  of  Christianity 
were  not  clearly  stated  in  the  early  Church,  and  the 
flight  of  eighteen  centuries  has  been  required  to  lift 
the  curtain  from  them.1  Conscience  is  placed  above  the 
Bible,  and  if  the  statements  of  the  Scriptures  be  in  con 
fliet  with  it,  allowance  must  be  made  for  occasional  in- 
accuracies, interpolations,  and  forgeries.2 

II.  Bunsen's  Biblical  Researches.  By  Rowland 
Williams,  D.  D.  We  here  find  the  same  deference  paid 
_o  conscience  as  in  the  preceding  essay.  If  it  differ  from 
revelation,  man's  own  notions  of  right  and  wrong  must 
prevail  over  Scripture.  Dr.  Williams  is  contented  with 
arraying  Bunsen's  skeptical  theories  before  the  British 
public  without  formally  indorsing  them  himself;  yet, 
as  their  reviewer,  he  is  evidently  in  complete  harmony 
with  the  German  author.  For  he  carefully  collects 
the  chevalier's  extravagant  speculations ;  brings  them 
into  juxtaposition ;  admires  the  spirit,  boldness,  and 
learning  which  had  given  birth  to  them  ;  and  in  no  case 
refutes,  but  looks  with  complacence  upon  nearly  every 
one.  The  impression  of  a  candid  reader  of  the  essay- 
must  be,  that  the  writer  indorses  almost  all  of  Bunsen's 
opinions  without  having  the  courage  to  avow  his  as- 
sent. Of  his  hero  he  says,  "  Bunsen's  enduring  glory  is 
neither  to  have  faltered  with  his  conscience,  nor  shrunk 
from  the  difficulties ,  of  the  problem,  but  to  have 
brought  a  vast  erudition,  in  the  light  of  a  Christian 
conscience,  to  unroll  tangled  records ;  tracing  frankly  the 
Spirit  of  God  elsewhere,  but  borrowing  chiefly  the  tra- 
ditions of  his  Hebrew  Sanctuary."  * 

1  For  an  able  refutation  of  this  point,  vid.  Houghton,  Bational'km  in 
the  Church  of  England,  pp.  127-136. 

2  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  54. 
*  Ibid.  p.  60. 


486  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

The  absence  of  that  reverence  to  be  expected  in  all 
whose  vocation  enjoins  the  frequent  reading  of  the  sub- 
lime liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England,  produces  a  de- 
pressing influence  upon  any  one  not  in  sympathy  with  the 
doctrines  of  nationalism.  The  Evangelical  theologians 
are  termed  "The  despairing  school,  who  forbid  us  to 
trust  in  God  or  in  our  own  conscience,  unless  we  kill 
our  souls  with  literalism."  x  The  inquiries  and  suc- 
cesses of  the  German  Rationalists  are  worthy  of  hearty 
admiration,  for  they  are  so  great  that  the  world  has  sel- 
dom, if  ever,  seen  their  equal.  Bishops  Pearson  and 
Butler,  and  Mr.  Mansel  are  seriously  at  fault  in  their 
notions  of  prophecy,  and  even  Jerome  is  guilty  of  gross 
puerilities.  There  is  no  reason  why  Bunsen  may  not 
be  right  when  he  holds  that  the  world  must  be  twenty 
thousand  years  oid ;  there  is  no  chronological  element 
in  revelation ;  the  avenger  who  slew  the  first-born,  may 
have  been  the  Bedouin  host ;  in  the  passage  of  the  Red 
Sea,  the  description  may  be  interpreted  with  the  latitude 
of  poetry;  it  is  right  to  reject  the  perversions  which 
make  the  cursing  Psalms  evangelically  inspired ;  per- 
haps one  passage  in  Zechariah  and  one  in  Isaiah  may  be 
direct  prophecies  of  the  Messiah,  and  possibly  a  chap- 
ter in  Deuteronomy  may  foreshadow  the  final  fall  of 
Jerusalem ;  the  Messianic  prophecies  are  mere  con- 
temporaneous history;  and  the  fifty-third  chapter  of 
Isaiah  is  only  a  description  of  the  sufferings  of  Jeremiah. 
Inspiration  is  too  loftily  conceived  by  "  the  well-meaning 
crowd,"  for  whom  we  should  manifest  "  grave  compas- 
sion." 

What  is  the  Bible,  continues  the  essayist,  but  the 
written  voice  of  the  congregation,  and  not  the  written 
voice  of  God  ?     Why  all  this  reverence  for  the  sacred 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  68. 


BADEN    POWELL'S    ESSAY.  487 

writers,  since  they  acknowledge  themselves  men  of  like 
passions  with  us  ?  Justification  by  faith  is  merely  peace 
of  mind  from  trust  in  a  righteous  God,  and  not  a  fiction 
of  merit  by  transfer.  Regeneration  is  a  correspondent 
giving  of  insight  or  an  awakening  of  the  forces  of  the 
soul ,  propitiation  is  the  recovery  of  peace,  and  the  atone- 
ment is  our  sharing  the  Saviour's  Spirit,  but  not  his  pur- 
chase of  us  by  his  own  blood.  Throughout  the  Scrip- 
tures we  should  assume  in  ourselves  a  verifying  faculty, — 
conscience,  reason,  or  whatever  else  we  choose  to  term  it. 

III.  On  the  Study  of  the  Evidences  of  Chris- 
tianity. By  Baden  Powell,  M.  A.  The  author  of  this 
essay  having  recently  died,  he  has  therefore  incurred  less 
censure  than  he  would  otherwise  have  received.  The 
views  here  expressed,  taken  in  connection  with  his  more 
elaborate  treatise  on  the  Order  of  Nature,  do  not  place 
him  on  the  same  theoretical  ground  with  Hume  and 
Spinoza;  but  the  moral  effect  of  the  present  attack 
upon  miracles  as  an  evidence  of  Christianity  is  not  less 
antagonistic  than  the  theories  of  either  of  those  authors. 
Spinoza  held  that  miracles  are  impossible,  because  it 
would  be  derogatory  to  God  to  depart  from  the  estab- 
lished laws  of  the  universe,  and  one  of  Hume's  objec- 
tions to  them  was  their  incapability  of  being  proved 
from  testimony.1 

Professor  Powell  objects  to  them  because  they  bear 
no  analogy  to  the  harmony  of  God's  dealings  in  the 
material  world  ;  and  insists  that  they  are  not  to  be  cred- 
ited, since  they  are  a  violation  of  the  laws  of  matter  01 
an  interruption  of  the  course  of  physical  causes.  The 
orthodox  portion  of  the  Church  are  laboring  under  the 
egregious  error  of  making  them  an  essential  doctrine, 
when  they  are  really  a  mere  external  accessory.     Rea 

1  Replies  to  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  135 


488  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

son,  and  not  "  our  desires  "  must  come  to  our  aid  in  all 
examination  of  them.  The  key-note  to  Professor  Pow- 
ell's opposition  is  contained  in  the  following  statement : 
"From  the  nature  of  our  antecedent  convictions,  the 
probability  of  some  kind  of  mistake  or  deception  some- 
where, though  we  know  not  tvhere,  is  greater  than  the 
probability  of  the  event  really  happening  in  the  tvay 
and  from  the  causes  assigned."  *  The  inductive  philoso- 
phy, for  which  great  respect  must  be  paid,  is  enlisted 
against  miracles.  If  we  once  know  all  about  those  al- 
leged and  held  as  such,  we  would  find  them  resolved 
into  natural  phenomena,  just  as  "  the  angel  at  Milan  was 
the  aerial  reflection  of  an  image  on  a  church  ;  the  balls 
of  fire  at  Plausac  were  electrical ;  the  sea-serpent  was  a 
basking  shark  on  a  stem  of  sea-weed.  A  committee  of 
the  French  Academy  of  Sciences,  with  Lavoisier  at  its 
head,  after  a  grave  investigation,  pronounced  the  al- 
leged fall  of  aerolites  to  be  a  superstitious  fable.'' 2 

The  two  theories  against  the  reality  of  miracles  in 
their  received  sense,  are :  first,  that  they  are  attribut- 
able to  natural  causes ;  and,  second,  that  they  may  in- 
volve more  or  less  of  the  parabolic  or  mythic  character. 
These  assumptions  do  away  with  any  real  admission  of 
miracles  even  on  religious  grounds.  The  animus  of  the 
whole  essay  may  be  determined  by  the  following 
treatment  of  testimony  and  reason :  "  Testimony,  after 
all,  is  but  a  second-hand  assurance ;  it  is  but  a  blind 
guide ;  testimony  can  avail  nothing  against  reason. 
The  essential  question  of  miracles  stands  quite  apart 
from  any  consideration  of  testimony •  the  question 
would  remain  the  same,  if  we  had  the  evidence  of  our 
own  senses  to  an  alleged  miracle ;  that  is,  to  an  extra- 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  120. 
8  Ibid.  p.  155. 


wilsojst's  essay.  489 

ordinary  or  inexplicable  fact.  It  is  not  the  mere  fact, 
but  the  cause  or  explanation  of  it,  which  is  the  point  at 
issue."  *  This  means  far  more  than  Spinoza,  Hume,  or 
any  other  opponent  of  miracles,  except  the  radical  Ra- 
tionalists of  Germany,  has  claimed, — that  we  must  not 
believe  a  miracle  though  actually  witnessed. 

IV.  Seances  Histoeiques  de  Geneve — The  Na- 
tional Chuech.  By  Henry  Bristow  Wilson,  B.  D. 
The  Multitudinist  principle,  or  Broad  Christianity,  is 
advocated  by  the  essayist  with  earnestness  and  an  array 
of  learning.  The  difficulty  concerning  the  non-attend- 
ance of  a  large  portion  of  the  British  population  upon 
the  ordinances  of  the  Church  is  met  by  the  proposition 
to  abrogate  subscription  to  all  creeds  and  articles  of 
faith,  and  thus  convert  the  whole  nation  into  a  Broad 
Church.  The  youth  of  the  land  are  educated  into  a 
false  and  idolatrous  view  of  the  Bible.  But  on  the 
Census-Sunday  of  1861,  five  millions  and  a  quarter  of 
'  persons,  or  forty-two  per  cent,  of  the  whole  population, 
were  not  present  at  service.  Many  of  these  people  do 
not  believe  some  of  the  doctrines  preached ;  they  have 
thought  seriously,  but  cannot  sympathize  with  what 
they  are  compelled  to  hear.  If  we  break  down  all  sub- 
scription and  include  them  in  the  great  National  Church, 
we  will  approach  the  Scriptural  ideal.  Unless  this  be 
done  they  will  fall  into  Dissenting  hands,  and  die  out- 
side the  Church  of  Christ.  There  are  several  proofs  of 
the  Scriptural  indorsement  of  Nationalism ;  Christ's 
lament  over  Jerusalem  declares  that  he  had  offered 
Multitudinism  to  the  inhabitants  nationally,  while  the 
three  thousand  souls  converted  on  the  day  of  Pentecost 
cannot  be  supposed  to  have  been  individual  converts, 
":iut  merely  a  mass  of  persons  brought  in  as  a  body. 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  159. 


490  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Some  of  the  converts  of  the  apostolic  age  did  not  believe 
in  the  resurrection,  which  fact  implies  that  the  early 
Churches  took  collective  names  from  the  localities  where 
they  were  situated,  and  that  doubt  of  the  resurrection 
should  now  be  no  bar  to  communion  in  the  National 
Church.     Even  heathenism  in  its  best  form  proceeded 
on  the  Multitudinist  principle,  for  all  were  included  as 
believers  in  the  faith  of  the  times.     The  approval  jf 
reason  and  conscience,  and  not  verbal  adherence  to  hu- 
man interpretation  of  Scripture,  should  be  the  great 
test  of  membership.     Advice  is  administered   by  the 
essayist  to  the  Church  of  which  he  is  a  clergyman,  in 
this  language  :  "  A  national  church  may  also  find  itself 
in  this  position ;  which,  perhaps,  is  our  own.     Its  minis- 
ters may  become  isolated  between  two  other  parties, — 
between  those,  on  the  one  hand,  who  draw  fanatical  infer- 
ences from  formularies  and  principles  which  they  them- 
selves are  not  able  or  are  unwilling  to  repudiate ;  and 
on  the  other,  those  who  have  been  tempted,  in  impa- 
tience of  old  fetters,  to  follow  free  thought  heedlessly 
wherever  it  may  lead  them.     If  our  own  churchmen 
expect  to  discourage  and  repress  a  fanatical  Christianity 
without  a  frank  appeal  to  reason,  and  a  frank  criticism 
of  Scripture,  they  will   find    themselves   without   any 
effectual  arms  for  that  combat ;  or  if  they  attempt  to 
check  inquiry  by  the  repetition  of  old  forms  and  denun- 
ciations, they  will  be   equally  powerless,  and  run  the 
especial  risk  of  turning  into  bitterness  the  sincerity  of 
those  who  should  be  their  best   allies,  as  friends  of 
truth.     They  should  avail  themselves  of  the  aid  of  all 
reasonable  persons  for  enlightening  the   fanatical  reli 
gionist,  making  no  reserve  of  any  seemingly  harmless  or 
apparently  serviceable  superstitions  of  their  own.     They 
should  also   endeavor  to   supply  to  the  negative  theo 


Goodwin's  essay.  491 

iogian  some  positive  elements  in  Christianity,  on 
grounds  more  sure  to  him  than  the  assumption  of  an 
objective  "  faith  once  delivered  to  the  saints,"  which  he 
cannot  identify  with  the  creed  of  any  church  as  yet 
known  to  him."  * 

V.  On  the  Mosaic  Cosmogony.  By  C.  W.  Good- 
win, M.  A.  The  assumption  is  made  that  the  Mosaic 
account  of  creation  is  irreconcilable  with  the  real  crea- 
tion of  the  earth.  We  do  wrong  in  elevating  that  nar- 
rative above  its  proper  position,  and  orthodox  geologists 
have  grossly  erred  in  attaching  much  importance  to  the 
language  of  the  first  chapter  of  Genesis.  There  is  noth- 
ing poetical  or  figurative  in  the  whole  account ;  it  con- 
tains no  mystical  or  symbolical  meaning,  and  is  a  plain 
statement  of  just  so  much  as  suited  the  Jewish  mind. 
All  attempts,  however,  to  find  any  consistency  between 
it  and  the  present  state  of  science  are  simply  absurd. 
The  theory  of  Chalmers  and  Buckland,  and  afterward 
that  of  Hugh  Miller,  are  not  tenable,  for  Moses  was  ig- 
norant of  what  we  now  know,  and  his  alleged  description 
is  contradicted  by  scientific  inquiiy.  If  then  it  is  plain 
that  God  has  not  thought  it  needful  to  communicate 
to  the  writer  of  the  Scriptural  Cosmogony  the  knowl- 
edge revealed  by  modern  researches,  why  do  we  not 
confess  it  ?  We  would  do  so  if  it  did  not  conflict  with 
a  human  theory  which  presumes  to  point  out  how  God 
ought  to  have  instructed  man.2  The  writer  had  no  au- 
thority for  what  he  asserts  so  solemnly  and  unhesi- 
tatingly, for  he  was  an  early  speculator  who  stated  as 
facts  what  he  only  conjectured  as  probabilities.  Yet  he 
Beized  one  great  truth,  in  which  he  anticipated  the 
highest  revelation  of  modern  inquiry  ;  namely,  the  unity 


33 


J  Essays  and  Reviews,  pp.  195-196. 
2  Ibid.  p.  277. 


49'i  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

of  the  design  of  the  world,  and  its  subordination  to  one 
sole  Maker  and  Law-giver.1  But  no  one  contends  that 
the  Mosaic  view  can  be  used  as  a  basis  of  astronomical 
or  geological  teaching ;  and  we  must  therefore  consider 
the  Scriptural  cosmogony  not  as  "  an  authentic  utter 
ance  of  divine  knowledge,  but  a  human  utterance, 
which  it  has  pleased  Providence  to  use  in  a  special 
way  for  the  education  of  mankind."  2 

VI.  Tendencies  of  Religious  Thought  in  Eng 
land,  1688-1750.  By  Mark  Pattison,  B.  D.  We  are 
surrounded  with  a  Babel  of  religious  creeds  and  theories, 
and  it  is  all-important  that  we  should  know  how  we 
have  inherited  them.  If  we  would  understand  our  times, 
we  must  know  the  productive  influences  of  the  past; 
if  we  would  thread  the  present  mazes  of  religious  pre- 
tension, we  should  not  neglect  those  immediate  agencies 
in  their  production  that  had  their  origin  near  the  begin- 
ning of  the  eighteenth  century.  These  agencies  are 
three  in  number :  1.  The  formation  and  growth  of  that 
compromise  between  church  and  state  which  is  called 
Toleration ;  2.  Methodism  without  the  Church  and  the 
evangelical  movement  within  it ;  3.  The  growth  and 
gradual  diffusion,  through  all  religious  thinking,  of  the 
supremacy  of  reason.  The  theology  of  the  Deistic  age  is 
identical  with  Rationalism.  That  Rationalistic  period  of 
England  is  divided  into  two  parts :  from  1688  to  1750, 
and  from  1750  to  1830.  The  second  age  may  be  called 
that  of  evidences,  when  the  clergy  continued  to  manu- 
facture evidence  as  an  ingenious  exercise, — a  literature 
wh'ch  was  avowedly  professional,  a  study  which  might 
seem  theology  without  being  it,  and  which  could 
awaken  none  of  the  dormant  skepticism  beneath  the 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  pp.  277-278. 
1  Ibid.  p.  278. 


PATTTSON   AND    JOWETT.  493 

surface  of  society.1  The  defense  of  the  Deists  was  per- 
haps as  good  as  the  orthodox  attack,  but  they  were 
inquirers  after  truth,  and  being  guided  by  reason,  they 
deserve  all  commendation.  Yet  they  only  foreshadowed 
the  glory  of  the  present  supremacy  of  reason.  Deism 
strove  eagerly  for  light ;  it  saw  the  dawn  ;  the  present 
is  the  noonday.  The  human  understanding  wished  to 
be  satisfied,  and  did  not  care  to  believe  that  of  which 
it  could  not  see  the  substantial  ground.  The  mind 
was  coming  slowly  to  see  that  it  had  duties  which  it 
could  not  devolve  upon  others,  and  that  a  man  must 
think  for  himself,  protect  his  own  rights,  and  adminis- 
ter his  own  affairs. 

Reason  was  never  less  extravagant  than  in  this  first 
essay  of  its  strength  ;  for  its  demands  were  modest,  and 
it  was  easily  satisfied, — far  too  easily,  we  must  think, 
when  we  look  at  some  of  the  reasonings  which  passed 
as  valid.2 

English  Deism,  a  system  which  paralyzed  the  reli- 
gious life  and  thought  of  the  nation,  has  never  had  a 
more  enthusiastic  eulogist  than  the  author  of  this  his- 
torical plea  for  Rationalism.  If  the  demands  of  the 
Deists  were  "  modest,"  who  shall  be  able  to  find  a  term 
sufficiently  descriptive  of  the  claims  of  their  present  suc- 
cessors % 

VII.  On  the  Interpretation  of  Scripture.  By 
Benjamin  Jowett,  M.  A.  Professor  Jowett,  as  commen- 
tator on  St.  Paul's  epistles,  had  already  so  defined  his 
position  on  the  science  of  Scriptural  exegesis,  that  we 
needed  no  new  information  to  be  convinced  of  his  an- 
tagonism to  evangelical  interpretation.  The  present 
essay,  which  is  the  most  formidable  and  destructive  in 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  287. 
*  Ibid.  pp.  328-329. 


494  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  volume,  commences  with  a  lamentation  over  the 
prevailing  differences  in  the  exposition  of  the  Bible. 
The  Germans  have  been  far  more  successful  in  this  re- 
spect than  the  English  people,  the  former  having  ar 
rived  at  a  tolerable  degree  of  concurrence. 

The  word  "  inspiration  "  is  a  crux  theologorum,  the 
most  of  its  explanations  being  widely  divergent,  and  at 
variance  with  the  original  signification  of  the  term. 
We  make  it  embrace  far  too  much,  for  there  is  no  foun- 
dation for  any  high  or  supernatural  views  of  inspiration 
in  either  the  Gospels  or  Epistles.  There  is  no  appearance 
in  those  writings  that  their  authors  had  any  extraordi- 
nary gift,  or  that  they  were  free  from  error  or  infirmity ; 
St.  Paul  hesitated  in  difficult  cases,  and  more  than  once 
corrected  himself;  one  of  the  gospel  historians  does  not 
profess  to  have  been  an  eye-witness  of  the  events  describ- 
ed by  him ;  the  evangelists  do  not  agree  as  to  the  dwell- 
ing-place of  Christ's  parents,  nor  concerning  the  circum- 
stances of  the  crucifixion  ;  they  differ  about  the  woman 
who  anointed  our  Lord's  feet ;  and  the  fulfillment  of  the 
Old  Testament  prophecy  is  not  discernible  in  the  New 
Testament  history.  To  the  question,  What  is  inspira- 
tion ?  there  are  two  answers :  first,  That  idea  of  Scrip- 
ture which  we  gather  from  the  knowledge  of  it ;  and, 
second,  that  any  true  doctrine  of  inspiration  must  con- 
form to  all  the  ascertained  facts  of  history  or  of  science. 
The  meaning  of  Scripture  has  nothing  to  do  with  the 
question  of  inspiration,  for  if  the  word  "  inspiration  " 
were  to  become  obsolete  nothing  vital  would  be  lost, 
since  it  is  but  a  term  of  yesterday.  The  solution  of  the 
various  difficulties  in  the  gospels  is,  that  the  tradition 
on  which  the  first  three  are  based  was  preserved  orally, 
and,  having  been  slowly  put  together,  was  written  in 
three  forms.     The  writers  of  the  first  three  gospels  were, 


hengstenberg's  protest.  49b 

therefore,  not  independent  witnesses  of  the  history  it- 
self. To  interpret  the  Bible  properly  it  must  be  treated 
as  any  other  book,  "  in  the  same  careful  and  impartial 
way  that  we  ascertain  the  meaning  of  Sophocles  or 
Plato.  .  .  .  Scripture,  like  other  books,  has  one 
meaning,  which  is  to  be  gathered  from  itself,  without 
reference  to  the  adaptations  of  fathers  or  divines,  and 
without  regard  to  a  priori  notions  about  its  nature  and 
origin.  It  is  to  be  interpreted  also  with  attention  to 
the  character  of  its  authors,  and  the  prevailing  state  of 
civilization  and  knowledge,  with  allowance  for  pecu- 
liarities of  style  and  language,  and  modes  of  thought 
and  figures  of  speech  ;  yet  not  without  a  sense,  that,  as 
we  read,  there  grows  upon  us  the  witness  of  God  in  the 
word,  anticipating  in  a  rude  and  primitive  age  the  truth 
that  was  to  be,  shining  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect 
day  in  the  life  of  Christ,  which  again  is  reflected  from 
different  points  of  view  in  the  teachings  of  his  apostles." 1 

The  old  methods  of  interpretation,  Jowett  concludes, 
must  give  place  to  this  new  and  perfect  system,  for  the 
growing  state  of  science,  the  pressing  wants  of  man,  and 
his  elevated  reason  demand  it.  If  this  liberal  scheme  be 
inaugurated  we  shall  have  a  higher  idea  of  truth  than 
is  supplied  by  the  opinion  of  mankind  in  general,  or  by 
the  voice  of  parties  in  a  Church. 

It  is  interesting  to  notice  the  opinions  of  the  evan- 
gelical theologians  of  Germany,  who  have  long  been 
accustomed  to  attacks  upon  Christianity,  concerning 
these  English  critics.  "  The  authors  of  the  essays," 
nays  Hengstenberg,  "  have  been  trained  in  a  German 
school.  It  is  only  the  echo  of  German  infidelity  which 
we  hear  from  the  midst  of  the  English  church.  They 
appear   to   us   as   parrots,  with   only  this   distinction, 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  p.  446. 


4-96  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

common  among  parrots,  that  they  imitate  more  or  less 
perfectly.  The  treatise  of  Temple  is  in  its  scientific 
value  about  equal  to  an  essay  written  by  the  pupils  of 
the  middle  classes  of  our  colleges.  .  .  .  The  essay 
of  Goodwin  on  the  Mosaic  cosmogony  displays  the 
naive  assurance  of  one  who  receives  the  modern  critical 
science  from  the  second  or  tenth  hand.  The  editoi 
[Hengstenberg]  asked  the  now  deceased  Andreas 
Wagner,  a  distinguished  professor  of  natural  sciences 
at  the  University  of  Munich,  to  subject  this  treatise  to 
an  examination  from  the  stand-point  of  natural  science. 
The  offer  was  accepted,  and  the  book  given  to  him. 
But  after  some  time  it  was  returned  with  the  remark, 
that  he  must  take  back  his  promise,  as  the  book  was 
beneath  all  criticism.  ...  All  these  essays  tend 
toward  Atheism.  Their  subordinate  value  is  seen  in 
the  inability  of  their  authors  to  recognize  their  goal 
clearly,  and  in  their  want  of  courage  to  declare  this 
knowledge.  Only  Baden  Powell  forms  in  this  respect 
an  exception.  He  uses  several  expressions,  in  which 
the  grinning  spectre  makes  his  appearance  almost  un- 
disguisedly.  He  speaks  not  only  sneeringly  of  the 
idea  of  a  positive  external  revelation,  which  has  hitherto 
formed  the  basis  of  all  systems  of  the  Christian  faith  ; 
he  even  raises  himself  against  the  '  Architect  of  the 
world,'  whom  the  old  English  Free  Thinkers  and  Free 
Masons  had  not  dared  to  attack."  l 

The  Essays  and  Reviews  were  not  long  in  print 
before  the  periodicals  called  attention  to  their  extraordi- 
nary character.  Had  they  not  been  the  Oxford  Essays, 
and  written  by  well-knowTn  and  influential  men,  they 
would  probably  have  created  but  little  interest,  and 
passed  away  with  the  first  or  second   edition.      Bui 

1  Evangelische  Kirchenzeitung,  Vorwort,  1862. 


OPPOSITION    TO   THE    "  ESSAYS    AND    REVIEWS.''        497 

their  origin  and  associations  gave  them  weight  at  the 
outset.  The  press  soon  began  to  teem  with  replies 
written  from  every  possible  stand-point.  Volumes  of 
all  sizes,  from  small  pamphlets  to  bulky  octavos,  were 
spread  abroad  as  an  antidote  to  the  poison.  From 
trustworthy  statements  we  are  assured  that  there  have 
been  called  forth  by  the  Essays  and  Reviews  in  Eng- 
land alone  nearly  four  hundred  publications.  Hardly 
a  newspaper,  religious  or  secular,  metropolitan  or  pro- 
vincial, has  stood  aloof  from  the  contest.  Every  seat 
of  learning  has  been  agitated,  the  social  classes  have 
been  aroused,  the  entire  nation  has  taken  part  in  the 
strife.  Meanwhile,  the  High  Church  and  Low  Church 
have  united  in  the  cordial  condemnation  of  the  work. 
Even  some  of  the  First  Broad  Churchmen  have  written 
heartily  against  its  theology  and  influence. 

A  remarkable  feature  of  the  whole  controversy  is 
the  judicial  prosecution  of  the  essayists.  Petitions  nu- 
merously signed  were  presented  to  the  bishops,  praying 
that  some  action  might  be  taken  against  them.  One 
protest  contained  the  signatures  of  nine  thousand 
clergymen  of  the  Established  church  ;  and  the  bishops, 
without  a  single  exception,  took  ground  against  the 
theological  bearing  of  the  Essays  and  Reviews.  The 
Convocations  of  Canterbury  and  York,  which  possessed 
the  full  exercise  of  their  legislative  functions  for  the 
first  time  in  one  hundred  and  fifty  years,  declared 
against  it,  and  pledged  their  influence  to  protect  the 
church  from  the  "  pernicious  doctrines  and  heretical 
tendencies  of  the  book.1'  After  much  deliberation 
and  counsel.  Dr.  Williams  and  Mr.  Wilson  were  sum- 
moned before  the  court  of  Arches,  the  chief  ecclesias- 
tical tribunal  of  England.  Finally,  June  21,  1864. 
decision  was  pronounced  that  they  had  departed  from 


498  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  teachings  of  the  Thirty-Nine  Articles  on  the  inspira 
tion  of  Holy  Scripture,  on  the  atonement,  and  on  justi- 
fication. They  were  therefore  suspended  for  one  year, 
with  the  further  penalty  of  costs  and  deprivation  of 
their  salary.  At  the  urgent  solicitation  of  friends,  it 
addition  to  their  own  strong  desire  to  push  their  de 
fense  as  far  as  possible,  their  case  was  "brought  before 
the  Privy  Council,  a  court  of  which  the  Queen  is  a 
member,  and  from  which  there  can  be  no  appeal.  Con- 
trary to  the  general  expectation,  the  decision  of  the 
Court  of  Arches  was  reversed,  and  the  essayists  in  ques. 
tion  were  restored  to  their  functions.  The  reversal  of 
the  decision  of  the  Court  of  Arches  is  couched  in  the 
following  significant  language :  "  On  the  general  ten- 
dency of  the  book  called  '  Essays  and  Ke views,'  and 
on  the  effort  or  aim  of  the  whole  essay  of  Dr.  Williams, 
or  the  whole  essay  of  Mr.  Wilson,  we  neither  can,  nor 
do,  pronounce  any  opinion.  On  the  short  extracts  be- 
fore us,  our  Judgment  is  that  the  charges  are  not 
proved.  Their  Lordships,  therefore,  will  humbly  recom- 
mend to  Her  Majesty  that  the  sentences  be  reversed,  and 
the  reformed  articles  be  rejected  in  like  manner  as  the 
rest  of  the  original  articles  ;  but  inasmuch  as  the  Appel- 
lants have  been  obliged  to  come  to  this  Court,  their 
Lordships  think  it  right  that  they  should  have  the  costs 
of  this  Appeal." l  This  action  was  regarded  by  every 
skeptical  sympathizer  as  a  great  triumph,  and  we  may 
therefore  expect  the  Rationalistic  school  to  engage  in 

1  Ecclesiastical  Judgments  of  the  Privy  Council,  p.  289.  Edited  bj 
Hon.  G.  C.  Brodrick,  and  the  Kev.  W.  H.  Freemantle.  London,  1865.  The 
members  of  the  Queen's  Privy  Council  are  as  follows :  Earls  Granville  and 
Lonsdale  ;  Duke  of  Buccleugh  ;  Marquis  of  Salisbury  ;  Lords  Westbury, 
Brougham,  Cranworth,  Wensleydale,  St.  Leonards,  Chelmsford,  and 
Kindsdown  ;  and  Eight  Hons,  Lnshington,  Bruce,  Wigram,  Ryan,  Pollock, 
Romilly,  Turner,  Cockburn,  Coleridge,  Erie,  and  Wylde. 


BISHOP    COLENSO.  499 

still  more  important  enterprises  than  any  to  which  they 
have  addressed  themselves. 

The  most  outspoken  and  violent  attacks  of  critical 
Rationalism  in  England  are  contained  in  the  exegetical 
publications  of  Dr.  John  William  Colenso,  who,  in 
:  853,  was  consecrated  Bishop  of  Natal,  South  Eastern 
Africa.  He  had  previously  issued  a  series  of  mathe- 
matical works  which  obtained  a  wide  circulation ;  but 
his  first  book  of  scriptural  criticism  was  the  Epistle  to 
the  Romans,  newly  translated  and  explained  from  a  Mis- 
sionary Point  of  View.  Having  completed  the  New 
Testament  and  several  parts  of  the  Old,  he  was  laboring 
assiduously  on  a  translation  of  the  Bible  into  the  Zulu 
tongue,  when  his  former  doubts  concerning  the  unhis- 
torical  character  of  the  Pentateuch  revived  with  in- 
creased force.  The  intelligent  native  who  was  assisting 
him  in  his  literary  work  asked,  respecting  the  account 
of  the  flood,  "Is  all  that  true?"  This,  with  other  in- 
quiries propounded  to  him  by  the  Zulus,  led  him  to  a 
careful  reexamination  of  the  Mosaic  record. 

The  fruit  of  this  additional  study  is  the  Pentateuch, 
and  Book  of  Joshua  critically  examined,  in  Three  Parts. 
Appearing  just  at  the  time  when  the  contest  concerning 
the  Essays  and  Reviews  was  at  fever-heat,  the  Bishop's 
work  added  excitement  to  all  the  combatants. 

Those  who  are  intimately  acquainted  with  the  treat- 
ment of  the  Pentateuch  and  Book  of  Joshua  by  the 
most  unsparing  of  the  German  Rationalists  will  at 
once  see  the  resemblance  between  their  views  and  those 
of  Colenso.  His  aim  is  to  overthrow  the  historica 
character  of  the  early  Scriptural  history  by  exposing 
the  contradictions  and  impossibilities  contained  therein  , 
and  also  to  fix  the  real  origin,  age  and  authorship  of 
the  so-called  narratives  of  Moses  and  Joshua.     "  I  have 


500  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

arrived  at  the  conviction,"  says  he,  "  that  the  Pentateuch, 
as  a  whole,  cannot  possibly  have  been  written  by  Moses, 
or  by  any  one  acquainted  personally  with  the  facts 
which  it  professes  to  describe,  and,  further,  that  the  so- 
called  Mosaic  narrative,  by  whomsoever  written,  anJ 
though  imparting  to  us,  as  I  fully  believe  it  does,  reve 
lations  of  the  Divine  will  and  character,  cannot  be  re- 
garded as  historically  true.  .  .  .  My  reason  for  no 
longer  receiving  the  Pentateuch  as  historically  true,  is 
not  that  I  find  insuperable  difficulties  with  regard  to  the 
miracles  or  supernatural  revelations  of  Almighty  God 
recorded  in  it,  but  solely  that  I  cannot,  as  a  true  man, 
consent  any  longer  to  shut  my  eyes  to  the  absolute,  pal- 
pable self-contradictions  of  the  narrative.  The  notion  of 
miraculous  or  supernatural  interferences  does  not  pre- 
sent to  my  own  mind  the  difficulties  which  it  seems  to 
present  to  some.  I  could  believe  and  receive  the  mira- 
cles of  Scripture  heartily,  if  only  they  were  authenti- 
cated by  a  veracious  history;  though,  if  that  is  not  the 
case  with  the  Pentateuch,  any  miracles,  which  rest  on 
such  an  unstable  support,  must  necessarily  fall  to  the 
ground  with  it.1 

In  proof  of  this  assumption  the  author  selects  a 
large  number  of  inexplicable  portions  from  the  narra- 
tives in  question,  and  uses  all  the  resources  of  his  tal- 
ents and  learning  to  prove  them  to  be  the  fruit  of 
"  error,  infirmity,  passion,  and  ignorance."  Hezron  and 
Hanuel,  he  avers,  were  certainly  born  in  the  land  of 
Canaan  ;  the  whole  assembly  of  Israel  could  not  have 
gathered  about  the  door  of  the  tabernacle ;  all  Israel 
could  not  have  been  heard  by  Moses,  for  they  numbered 
about  two  millions  of  people,  according  to  the  assumption 
of  the  Biblical  narrative.     The  Israelites  could  not  have 

1  Pentateuch  and  Booh  oj  Joshua.     Part  I.,  pp.  49,  51-52.    Am.  Edition. 


00LENS0  ON  THE  PENTATEUCH.  5Ul 

dwelt  in  tents;  they  were  not  armed  ;  the  institution  of 
the  Passover,  as  described  in  the  book  of  Exodus,  was 
an  impossibility,  the  Israelites  could  not  take  cattle 
through  the  barren  country  over  which  they  passed ; 
there  is  an  incompatibility  between  the  supposed  number 
of  Israel  and  the  predominance  of  wild  beasts  in  Pales- 
tine ;  the  number  of  the  first-born  is  irreconcilable 
with  the  number  of  male  adults ;  and  the  number  of 
the  priests  at  the  exodus  cannot  be  harmonized  with 
their  duties,  and  with  the  provision  made  for  them.1 
These,  with  other  difficulties  chiefly  of  a  numerical 
nature,  constitute  the  basis  on  which  the  Bishop 
builds  his  objections  to  the  historical  character  of  Ex- 
odus as  an  integral  part  of  the  Pentateuch. 

In  order  to  determine  the  true  quality  of  the 
Book  of  Genesis,  he  brings  out  the  old  theory  that  the 
work  had  two  writers,  the  Elohist  and  the  Jehovist, — 
so  called  because  of  their  separate  use  of  a  term  for 
Deity.  The  Elohist  was  the  older,  and  his  narrative 
was  the  ground-work  which  the  Jehovist  used  and  upon 
which  he  constructed  his  own  additions.2  This  Elohist 
account  is  defined  to  be  "  a  series  of  parables,  based, 
as  we  have  said,  on  legendary  facts,  though  not  histori- 
cally true  "  3  The  Pentateuch  existed  originally  not  as 
five  books,  but  as  one ;  and  it  is  possible  that  its  quin- 
tuple division  was  made  in  the  time  of  Ezra.  The 
writer  of  Chronicles  was  the  same  who  wrote  the  books 
of  Ezra  and  Nehemiah,  probably  a  Levite  living  after 
the  time  of  Nehemiah ;  the  Chronicles  were  therefore 
written  only  four  hundred  years  before  Christ ;  but  the 
Chronicler  must  not  be  relied  on  unless   there  is  other 

1  Pentateuch  and  Book  of  Joshua,  Part  I.,  pp.  60,  78,  81,  94,  105,  118, 
138,  141,  185. 

*  Pentateuch  and  Book  of  Joshua.     Part  II.,  p.  60.  '  Ibid.  p.  296 


502  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

evidence  in  support  of  his  narrative.  Exodus  could  not 
have  been  written  by  Moses  or  any  one  of  his  contem- 
poraries. It  is  very  probable  that  the  Pentateuch  gen- 
erally was  composed  in  a  later  age  than  that  of  Moses 
or  Joshua.1  Samuel  was  most  likely  the  author  of  the 
Elohistic  legends,  which  he  left  at  his  death  in  an  un- 
finished state,  and  which  naturally  fell  into  the  hands 
of  some  one  of  his  disciples  of  the  School  of  the 
Prophets,  such,  for  instance,  as  Nathan  or  Gad.2 

Yet  the  writer  of  the  Pentateuch  must  not  be  re- 
proached for  his  errors  as  much  as  those  who  would  at- 
tribute to    him    infallible   accuracy.     He  had   no  idea 
that  he  was  writing  truth.     "But,"  says  the   Bishop, 
"  there  is  not  the  slightest  reason  to  suppose  that  the  first 
writer  of  the  story  in  the  Pentateuch  ever  professed  to 
be  recording  infallible  truth,  or  even  actual,  historical 
truth.     He  wrote  certainly  a  narrative.     But  what  indi- 
cations are  there  that  he  published  it  at  large,  even  to 
the  people  of  his  own  time,  as  a  record  of  matter-of-fact, 
veracious  history  ?     Why  may  not  Samuel,  like  any 
other  Head  of  an  Institution,  have  composed  this  narra- 
tive for  the  instruction  and  improvement  of  his  pupils, 
from  which  it  would  gradually  fiud  its  way,  no  doubt, 
more  or  less  freely,  among  the  people  at  large,  without 
ever  pretending  that  it  was  any  other  than  an  historical 
experiment, — an  attempt  to  give  them  some  account  of 
the  early  annals  of  their  tribes  ?     In  later  days,  it  is  true, 
this  ancient  work  of  Samuel's  came  to  be  regarded  as 
infallibly  Divine.     But  was  it  so  regarded  in  the  writer's 
days,  or  in  the  ages  immediately  following  ?    On  the  con- 
trary,  we  find  no  sign  of  the  Mosaic  Law  being  ven- 
erated, obeyed,  or  even  known,  in  many  of  its  most 

1  Pentateuch  and  Book  of  Joshua,  Part  II.,  pp.  83,  84,  115. 
*  Ibid.  p.  160. 


PROTEST    AGAINST    COLENSO.  503 

remarkable   features,   till   a   much    later   time   in    his- 
tory." * 

The  excitement  occasioned  by  the  publication  of 
these  views  of  Colenso  was  second  only  to  that  pro- 
duced by  the  Essays  and  Reviews.     There   was  a  de- 
cided disposition  on  the  part  of  the  ecclesiastical  author- 
ities to  deal  summarily  with  him,  since  he   had   been 
intrusted  with  the  Episcopal  office,  and  sent   as   a   mis- 
sionary to  the  heathen.     Several  of  the  Bishops  early 
took  ground  against  his  destructive  criticism,  and   re- 
fused to  allow  him  to   officiate  within  their  dioceses. 
The  Convocations  of  York  and  Canterbury  united  in 
condemnation  of  his  work.     There  was  a  difference  of 
opinion  as  to  the  best  method  of  depriving  him  of  his 
episcopal  authority.     In  the  dilemma  it  was  resolved  to 
appeal  to  him  without  any  appearance  of  legal  pressure ; 
whereupon  the  Bishops  of  England  and  Ireland,  with 
but   three    exceptions,  Drs.  Thirlwall,  Fitzgerald,  and 
Griffin,  addressed  him  a  letter,  in    which   he    was    re- 
quested to  resign  his  office,  since  he  must  see,  as  well'  as 
they,  the  inconsistency  of  holding  his  position  as  Bishop 
and  believing  and  publishing  such   views  as  were  con- 
tained in  his  exegetical  works.     His  reply  was  a  positive 
refusal,  coupled  with  the  statement  that  he  would  soon 
return  to  his  See  in  Africa,  there  to  continue  the   dis- 
charge of  his  duties.     The  Episcopal  Bench  of  England 
failing  to  eject  him,  he  was  tried  and  condemned  before 
an  Episcopal  Synod,  which  assembled  in  Cape  Town, 
Southern  Africa,  on  November  27th,  1863. 

The  charges  against  Colenso  were  : — his  denial  of  the 
atonement;  belief  in  man's  justification  without  any 
knowledge  of  Christ ;  belief  in  natal  regeneration  ;  disbe^ 
lief  in  the  endlessness  of  future  punishment ;  denial  of 

1  Pentateuch  and  Booh  of  Joshua.     Part  II.,  p.  292. 


T'04  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  inspiration  of  the  Holy  Scriptures,  and  of  the  truth 
fulness  of  what  they  profess  to  describe  as  facts ;  de- 
nial of  the  divinity  of  our  blessed  Lord  ;  and  depraving, 
impugning,  and  bringing  into  disrepute  the  Book  of 
Common  Prayer.  Having  been  adjudged  guilty,  he, 
was  deposed  from  his  office  as  Bishop  of  Natal,  and 
thenceforth  prohibited  from  the  exercise  of  all  min- 
isterial functions  within  any  part  of  the  metropolitical 
province  of  Cape  Town.  Being  absent  in  England  at 
the  time  of  the  trial,  Colenso  was  represented  by  Dr. 
Bleek,  who  protested  against  the  legality  of  the  pro- 
ceedings and  the  validity  of  the  judgment,  at  the  same 
time  giving  notice  of  his  intention  to  appeal.  But  the 
Metropolitan  of  Cape  Town  refused  to  recognize  any 
appeal,  except  to  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  which 
must  be  made  within  fifteen  days  from  sentence.  Im- 
mediately after  the  deposition,  the  Dean  of  Natal,  the 
Archdeacon,  the  parochial  clergy,  and  the  church- 
wardens of  the  diocese,  signed  a  declaration,  by  which 
they  pledged  themselves  not  to  recognize  Colenso  any 
longer  as  their  Bishop. 

Before  Colenso  was  served  with  a  copy  of  the 
decree  against  him,  he  issued  a  letter  to  his  diocese,  in 
which  he  denied  the  power  claimed  by  the  Metropoli- 
tan and  the  other  bishops  of  Cape  Town  to  depose  him. 
He  maintained  that,  of  the  nine  charges  brought  against 
him,  four  had  already  been  disposed  of  by  the  late  judg- 
ment of  the  Privy  Council  in  the  case  of  the  Essays  and 
Reviews.  In  the  meanwhile,  his  friends  at  home  collected 
a  fund  of  more  than  two  thousand  pounds  to  enable  him 
to  plead  his  cause  before  the  English  courts.  The  first 
proceeding  in  Great  Britain  commenced  in  1863,  before 
the  judicial  committee  of  the  Privy  Council.  The  case 
has  finally  been  decided  in  Colenso's  favor,  the  Lord 


COLENSO'S  INFLUENCE.  505 

Chancellor  declaring  the  sentence  pronounced  by  the 
Bishop  of  Cape  Town  illegal,  in  the  following  words  : 
"  As  the  question  can  be  decided  only  by  the  sovereign 
or  head  of  the  Established  Church  and  depositary  of 
appellate  jurisdiction,  their  Lordships  will  humbly  re- 
port to  Her  Majesty  their  judgment  and  opinion  that 
the  proceedings  taken  by  the  Bishop  of  Cape  Town,  and 
the  judgment  or  sentence  pronounced  by  him  against 
the  Bishop  of  Natal,  are  null  and  void." 

But  while  this  judgment  of  the  Privy  Council  an- 
nulled the  proceedings  against  Colenso,it  also  destroyed 
his  Episcopal  authority  by  pronouncing  that  the  letters 
patent  of  the  Queen,  by  which  he  was  made  Bishop, 
had  neither  been  authorized  by  any  Parliamentary 
statute  nor  confirmed  by  the  legislative  council  of 
Natal.  His  continuance  in  authority,  therefore,  was 
made  dependent  on  the  voluntary  recognition  of  the 
clergy  within  the  diocese  of  Natal.  But  the  latest  in- 
telligence reveals  the  important  fact  that  the  clergy 
unanimously  refuse  to  recognize  his  Episcopal  author- 
ity, and  have  asked  the  Bishop  of  Cape  Town  to  ad- 
minister the  diocese  until  a  new  appointment  can  be 
made  for  the  See  of  Natal.  The  trustees  of  the  Colo- 
nial Bishops'  fund  have  also  declared  that  they  will  no 
longer  pay  the  salary  of  Colenso.  He  has  already  set 
sail  for  Southern  Africa,  but  on  his  arrival  will  find 
himself  without  a  clergy  or  a  people  to  recognize  his 
jurisdiction.  Dr.  Pusey  has  written  an  interesting  let- 
ter, in  which  he  hails  the  decision  of  the  Privy  Council 
as  an  indication  that  the  church  of  South  Africa  will 
soon  be  as  free  and  prosperous  as  the  Scotch  Episcopal 
church  and  the  church  of  the  United  States. 

The  remaining  parts  of  the  Bishop's  Commentary  on 
the  Pentateuch  and  Booh  of  Joshuahsive  met  with  a  tard) 


506  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

and  cold  reception.  We  accept  this  as  a  hopeful  sign 
that  no  great  portion  of  the  people  are  willing  to  adopt 
his  theological  views.  The  first  two  parts,  however, 
created  an  excitement  which  was  not  confined  to  Chris- 
tian lands.  Even  a  Mussulman  addressed  a  letter  from 
the  Cape  of  Good  Hope  to  a  Turkish  paper  at  Constan- 
tinople, in  which  he  gives  an  account  of  the  Christians 
in  that  colony,  together  with  a  description  of  their  multi- 
form dissensions.  "  Their  priests,"  he  writes,  "  all  advo- 
cate different  creeds  ;  and  as  to  their  bishops,  one  Colen- 
so  actually  writes  books  against  his  own  religion."  It 
may  be  more  a  gratification  of  the  vanity  than  flat- 
tering to  the  piety  of  the  late  Missionary  to  the  Zulus 
to  be  informed  that  already  the  Buddhists  of  India  are 
making:  free  use  of  his  works  as  an  invaluable  aid  in 
their  controversies  with  the  missionaries  from  Christian 
lands.  Thus  the  herald  of  the  cross  of  Christ  in  hea- 
then nations  must  encounter  not  only  the  superstition 
and  prejudices  of  paganism,  but  the  infidelity  export- 
ed from  his  own  home,  where  for  centuries  the  battles 
of  the  truth  have  been  fought  and  won. 


CHAPTER     XXII. 

ENGLAND   CONTINUED:    SURVEY  OP  CHURCH  PARTIES. 

The  Church  of  England  has  always  been  proud  of 
the  outward  form  of  unity.  Her  rigid  view  of  the  sin 
of  schism  has  induced  her  to  submit  to  great  elasticity 
of  opinion  and  teaching  rather  than  incur  the  traditional 
disgrace  of  open  division.  But  on  this  veiy  account 
she  has  never  been  free  from  internal  strife.  In  every- 
thing but  in  name  she  has  been  for  centuries  not  one 
church,  but  several.  Her  entire  history  discloses  two 
tendencies  balancing  each  other,  and  for  the  most 
part  reacting  to  great  advantage.  The  Sacramentalist 
party  represents  Romanizing  tendencies,  and  is  thor- 
oughly devoted  to  "  the  sacramental  services  and  the 
offices  of  the  church,  especially  as  performed  according 
to  the  rubric."  The  Evangelical  party  is  less  formal, 
is  in  harmony  with  the  Articles,  aims  to  keep  up 
with  the  accumulating  religious  wants  of  society,  and 
lays  stress  upon  the  practical  evidences  of  Christian 
life.  Under  these  two  standards  may  be  ranked  all 
those  schools  within  the  pale  of  the  Church  which 
have  been  growing  into  prominence  since  the  closing 
years  of  the  eighteenth  century.  We  will  only  speak 
of  the  most  influential  parties,  remembering,  however, 
that  each  of  them  is  again  subdivided  into  various 
sections. 

34 


508  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

The  Low  Church.  Within  a  short  time  after  the 
Church  of  England  gave  signs  of  religious  awakening 
in  consequence  of  the  rise  of  the  Wesleyan  movement, 
the  triumph  of  evangelical  tendencies  was  complete. 
"  In  less  than  twenty  years,"  says  Conybeare,  "  the 
original  battle-field  was  won,  and  the  enemy  may  be 
said  to  have  surrendered  at  discretion.  Thenceforward, 
scarcely  a  clergyman  was  to  be  found  in  England  who 
preached  against  the  doctrines  of  the  creed.  The  faith 
of  the  church  was  restored  to  the  level  of  her  formu- 
laries." *  The  revival  was  so  thorough  that  it  gave  rise 
to  a  zealous  class  which  was  called  by  its  friends  the 
Evangelical  Party,  but  by  its  enemies  the  Low  Church. 

The  Low  Church  had  its  seat  at  Cambridge,  and 
was  conducted  by  vigorous  theologians,  who  were 
encouraged  and  aided  by  highly-respected  and  lead- 
ing laymen.  Attaching  new  importance  to  the  neg- 
lected doctrines,  their  principal  themes  were  "the 
universal  necessity  of  conversion,"  "justification  by 
faith,"  and  "  the  sole  authority  of  Scripture  as  the  rule 
of  faith."  They  were  worthy  successors  of  the  old 
Evangelical  party,  represented  by  Milner,  Martyn,  and 
Wilberforce.  Through  their  agency  there  arose  in  the 
popular  mind  a  dislike  of  ecclesiastical  landmarks,  the 
state  church  fell  into  disrepute,  the  broadest  catholicitv 
received  hearty  support,  and  personal  piety  was  the 
acknowledged  test  of  true  religion.  In  1828  Lord  Rus- 
sell, the  leader  of  the  Reform  party,  effected  the  abro- 
gation of  the  Test  Act, — a  law  which  required  all 
officers,  civil  and  military,  to  receive  the  sacrament 
according  to  the  usage  of  the  Established  church,  and 
to  take  an  oath  against  transubstantiation  within  six 
months  after   their  entrance   into   office.     The   repea] 

1  Essays  Ecclesiastical  and  Social,  pp.  62-63. 


INFLUENCE    OF   THE   LOW    CHURCH.  509 

immediately  placed  Dissenters  and  Catholics  upon  the 
same  footing  with  members  of  the  Established  church, 
and  was  in  itself  sufficient  to  provoke  opposition  on  the 
part  of  all  who  had  not  united  in  the  evangelical  move- 
ment. But  the  antagonism  became  still  more  decided 
when  Parliament  passed  the  Irish  Church  Property 
Act,  in  1833,  in  spite  of  the  determined  remonstrances 
of  the  bishops.  One  half  of  the  Irish  bishoprics  were 
thereby  abrogated,  Parliament  assuming  ecclesiastical 
authority.  The  people  supported  the  Parliament,  and 
in  some  instances  public  indignation  was  hurled  at  the 
bishops  themselves. 

The  Low  Church  has  always  been  on  the  side  of 
popular  reform.  Not  forgetful  of  its  lineal  descent  from 
that  evangelical  spirit  which  animated  Wilberforce, 
Stephen,  Thornton,  and  Buxton,  in  their  philanthropic 
labors,  it  has  sought  out  the  population  of  the  fac- 
tories and  mines  of  England,  and  addressed  itself  to 
the  relief  of  their  cramped  and  stifled  inmates.  It  has 
reorganized  Bagged-Schools,  and  endeavored  to  reach 
all  the  suffering  classes  of  the  kingdom.  Neither  has 
it  been  found  unmindful  of  the  wants  of  the  heathen 
world,  for  no  sooner  did  the  Low  Church  commence 
its  public  career  than  it  founded  the  Church  Mission- 
ary Society,  which  has  established  over  one  hun- 
dred and  forty-eight  missionary  stations,  sustains  two 
hundred  and  sixty-six  clergymen,  and  includes  about 
twenty  thousand  members.1  These  labors  have  been 
abundantly  successful,  for  besides  the  converted  towns 
on  the  coast  of  Africa,  "  whole  districts  of  South- 
ern India  have  embraced  the  faith ;  and  the  native 
population  of  New  Zealand  (spread  over  a  territory  as 
large  as  England)  has  been  reclaimed  from  cannibalism 

1  Christian  Work.  June,  1863. 


510  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

and  added  to  the  church."  The  same  party  was  chiefly 
instrumental  in  establishing  the  British  and  Foreign 
Bible  Society,  which  has  translated  the  Scriptures  into 
one  hundred  and  fifty  languages,  and  distributes  over 
two  millions  of  copies  annually. 

The  Low  Church  party  was  the  first  to  tell  England 
that  her  population  had  far  outgrown  her  places  of 
worship,  and  it  accordingly  devised  means  to  remedy 
the  evil.  Archbishop  Sumner  founded  the  first  Diocesan 
Church  Building  Society,  in  1828 ;  and  after  becoming 
Bishop  of  Chester  consecrated  more  than  two  hun- 
dred new  churches.  Mr.  Simeon  of  Cambridge  had 
previously  set  the  example  of  caring  for  the  unchurched 
population  by  his  personal  labors  and  the  outlay  of  his 
large  private  fortune.  His  name  is  now  like  "  ointment 
poured  forth  "  among  the  inhabitants  of  Bath,  Clifton, 
Bradford,  and  other  places.  The  Pastoral  Aid  Society 
was  founded  in  1836,  and  by  its  lay  and  clerical  em- 
ployees, is  now  ministering  to  the  spiritual  wants  of  over 
three  millions  of  souls.  The  Low  Churchmen  have  also 
established,  in  needy  localities,  Sunday  Schools,  Infant 
Schools,  Lending  Libraries,  Benefit  Societies,  Clothing 
Clubs,  and  Circles  of  Scripture  Readers.  From  the 
ranks  of  this  party  have  arisen  devout  and  zealous 
preachers,  who,  without  any  great  natural  endowments, 
have  given  their  hearts  to  the  work  of  saving  souls. 
Hamilton  Forsyth,  Spencer  Thornton,  and  Henry  Fox, 
— the  follower  of  Henry  Martyn  to  Southern  India, — 
are  names  which  will  ever  adorn  the  history  of  the 
Church  of  England.1 

At  the  present  time  the  Low  Church  is  leading  the 
van  within  the  Establishment,  in  all  those  movements 
which    have  the  stamp  of  true   piety.     It  is  seeking 

1  Conybeare,  Essays  Ecclesiastical  and  Social,  pp.  65-71. 


LOW    CHURCH    PARTIES.  511 

out  the  ibondoned  and  homeless  wretches  in  the 
darkest  -  inks  of  London,  reading  the  Bible  to  them, 
clothing,  finding  work,  and  training  them  to  self-respect. 
Some  of  its  clergy  are  among  the  most  gifted  and 
influential  in  Great  Britain,  whether  at  the  editor's 
table,  in  the  pulpit,  or  on  the  platform.  The  lofty  po- 
sition they  have  lately  taken  against  the  inroads  of  Ra- 
tionalism entitles  them  to  the  thanks  and  admiration  of 
Christendom. 

Within  the  Low  Church  there  are  two  subdivisions. 
The  first  is  the  Recordite  party,  so  called  from  its  organ. 
It  intensifies  the  doctrines  of  the  Low  Church;  on 
justification  by  faith  it  builds  its  view  of  the  worth- 
lessness  of  morality ;  on  conversion  by  grace  its  pre- 
destinarian  fatalism ;  and  on  the  supremacy  of  Scrip- 
ture its  dogma  of  verbal  inspiration.  It  holds  strong 
Biblical  views  on  the  sanctity  of  the  Sabbath,  and 
both  by  the  pulpit  and  the  press,  opposes  the  secu- 
larization of  the  Lord's  day.  The  other  party  is  sneer- 
ingly  called  the  "  Low  and  Slow,"  and  corresponds  with 
a  similar  faction  within  the  High  Church  which  en- 
joys the  sobriquet  of  the  "  High  and  Dry." 

After  the  evangelical  movement  had  fully  taken 
root  there  arose  an  antagonistic  tendency ;  it  was  the 
old  Sacramentalist  party  re-asserting  itself.  Oxford 
arrayed  itself  against  Cambridge.  The  views  of  Laud 
had  always  found  favor  in  the  former  seat  of  learning, 
and  their  adherents  felt  that  the  time  had  now  come  for 
their  vigorous  revival.  They  directed  their  opposition 
equally  against  Parliamentary  usurpation  and  evangeli- 
cal liberalism.  The  centre  of  the  counter-movement 
was  Oriel  College,  which,  under  Whately,  Hampden, 
and  Thomas  Arnold,  was  already  celebrated  for  its  new 
spirit  of  free  scientific  inquiry.     Keble,  Pusey,  Fronde. 


512  HISTOEY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

and  J.  H.  Newman,  were  here  associated  either  as  fel 
lows  or  students.  Froude  recognized  the  truth  of  the 
saying  of  Vicentius  :  "  Quod  semper,  quod  uoique,  quod 
ah  omnibus  creditum  est?  He  rose  above  his  friends 
as  leader  of  the  whole  movement. 

The  Conference  which  convened  at  Hadley,  was  the 
first  organized  demonstration  against  the  evangelical 
portion  of  the  Low  Church.  Its  initiative  act  was  the 
adoption  of  a  catechism  which  contained  the  views  of  the 
High  Churchmen,  and  was  the  first  issue  of  the  celebrated 
series  of  Tracts  which  gave  to  the  new  movement  the 
name  of  Tractarianism.  It  was  published  in  1833,  and 
the  last  of  the  series,  the  ninetieth,  appeared  seven  years 
afterward.  Newman  and  Pusey  were  the  chief  writers. 
Pusey  preached  a  sermon  in  1843  which  avowed,  with 
only  slight  modifications,  the  doctrine  of  transubstantia- 
tion ;  in  consequence  of  which  he  was  deposed  from 
preaching  to  the  university  for  the  space  of  two  years. 
The  Romish  church  received  flattering  eulogy  from  all 
the  High  Churchmen  or  Tractarians.  It  was  represented 
by  them  as  the  embodiment  of  all  that  was  grand,  impos- 
ing, and  sound  in  art,  poetry,  or  theology.  When  New- 
man went  over  to  its  fold,  Pusey  said  of  him  :  "  He  has 
been  called  to  labor  in  another  part  of  the  Lord's  vine- 
yard/' The  High  Church  went  so  far  in  its  opposition 
to  the  Low  that  many  attached  to  the  former  felt  more 
attracted  to  Roman  Catholicism  than  to  any  form  of 
Protestantism.  Accordingly,  at  the  close  of  1846,  one 
hundred  and  fifty  clergymen  and  distinguished  laymen 
had  gone  over  to  Popery. 

The  doctrines  of  the  High  Church  may  be  di- 
vided into  two  classes :  the  material,  or  justification 
by  sacraments ;  and  the  formal,  or  the  authority  of  the 
church. 


OPINIONS    OF    THE    HIGH    CHUKCR.  513 

While  it  declares  that  we  are  justified  by  faith,  it 
also  holds  that  we  are  judged  by  works.  Men  are  con- 
verted by  grace,  but  Christians  are  regenerated  by 
baptism.  The  Scriptures  are  supreme  authority,  but 
the  "  church  hath  authority  in  controversies  of  faith," 
by  virtue  of  its  apostolic  descent.  The  watchwords 
of  the  High  Church  are,  therefore,  judgment  by  works ; 
baptismal  regeneration ;  church  authority ;  and  apos- 
tolical succession.  Faith,  it  claims,  does  not  justify  us 
in  and  of  itself,  but  simply  briugs  us  to  God,  who  then 
justifies  us  by  his  free  grace.  Baptism  is  regeneration; 
in  the  New  Testament  the  new  birth  is  always  con- 
nected with  it ;  we  are  not  born  of  faith,  or  of  love,  or 
of  prayer,  but  by  water  and  the  Spirit.  All  Tracta- 
rians  believe  in  the  real  presence  of  Christ,  and  only 
differ  as  to  the  mode  in  which  he  is  present.  The  com 
secrated  elements  become  really  the  body  and  blood  of 
Christ  by  virtue  of  the  consecrating  word,  though  the 
change  takes  place  in  a  spiritual  and  inexpressible  way. 
Christ  is  a  kind  Saviour  to  those  who  partake  of  the 
sacrament  of  the  Lord's  Supper  worthily,  but  a  harsh 
judge  to  those  who  do  it  unworthily. 

High  Churchmen  hold  that  the  Church  is  a  saving 
institution  founded  by  Christ,  and  continued  by  apostol- 
ical succession.  It  is  the  only  mediator  of  salvation  in 
Christ  in  so  far  as  it  is  the  only  dispenser  of  the  means 
of  grace,  the  only  protectress  and  witness  of  the  truth, 
and  the  highest  authority  in  matters  of  faith  and  practice. 
There  are  three  tests  of  the  true  Church  '.first,  apostoli- 
city,  or  the  divine  origin  of  the  Church  and  its  succession 
of  apostles ;  second,  catholicity,  or  the  truth  in  matters 
of  instruction  and  life  communicated  through  the  suc- 
cession of  the  apostles,  the  truth  in  matters  of  faith 
and  life  as  interpreted  by  Scripture  and  tradition ;  and, 


514  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

third,  autonomy,  or  the  absolute  independence  and  su 
prenie  authority  of  the  Church  in  faith  and  practice. 

Apostolical  succession  was  the  first  dogma  in  which 
all  High  Churchmen  united.  Connected  with  this 
opinion  is  the  idea  that  the  priesthood  is  the  only  medi 
atorial  office  between  Christ  and  the  congregation. 
The  bishops  are  the  spiritual  sons  of  the  apostles,  and 
should  be  respected  for  their  office'  sake ;  Christ  is  the 
Mediator  above,  but  his  servant,  the  bishop,  is  his 
image  on  earth.1  The  Church  has  authority  to  forgive 
sins  by  the  new  birth,  and  to  bring  souls  from  hell  to 
heaven.2  Tradition  must  be  respected  not  less  than  the 
Bible  itself;  the  Old  and  New  Testaments  are  the 
fountain  of  the  doctrines,  and  the  catholic  fathers  the 
channel  through  which  they  flow  down  to  us.3  The 
Bible  must  be  explained,  not  by  individual  opinion,  but 
by  the  church ;  for  the  Church  is  its  rightful  interpreter. 

It  must  be  said,  in  justice  to  the  High  Church,  that 
while  it  attaches  great  weight  to  these  views  it  does  not 
discard  those  really  important.  It  does  not  overlook  the 
doctrines  maintained  by  the  majority  of  evangelical 
Christians.  The  moderate  members  of  this  party,  espe- 
cially, do  not  hold  them  as  "  the  basis  of  their  system,  but 
only  as  secondary  and  ornamental  details.  Even  against 
Dissenters  they  are  not  rigidly  enforced.  The  heredi- 
tary non-conformist  is  not  excluded  from  salvation. 
Foreign  Protestants  are  even  owned  as  brethren,  though 
a  mild  regret  is  expressed  that  they  lack  the  blessing 
of  an  authorized  church  government.  Apostolical  suc- 
cession is  not  practically  made  essential  to  the  being  of 
a  church,  but  rather  cherished  as  a  dignified  and  an- 
cient pedigree,  connecting  our  English  episcopate  with 

1  Tract  No.  10.  '  Sewel. 

*  Pusey,  Preface  to  18th  vol.  Library  of  Church  Father*. 


USEFULNESS    OF   THE   HIGH    CHURCH.  515 

primitive  antiquity,  and  binding  the  present  to  the  past 
by  a  chain  of  filial  piety.  In  the  same  hands,  church 
authority  is  reduced  to  little  more  than  a  claim  to  that 
deference  which  is  due  from  the  ignorant  to  the  learned, 
from  the  tausrht  to  the  teacher." l 

Of  the  general  service  rendered  by  the  High 
( Churchmen,  the  same  writer  says,  ''Their  system  gives 
freer  scope  to  the  feelings  of  reverence,  awe,  and  beauty 
than  that  of  their  opponents.  They  endeavor,  and 
often  successfully,  to  enlist  these  feelings  in  the  service 
of  piety.  Music,  painting,  and  architecture,  they  con- 
secrate as  the  handmaids  of  religion.  Thus  they  at- 
tract an  order  of  men  chiefly  found  among  the  most 
cultivated  classes,  whose  hearts  must  be  reached  through 
their  imagination  rather  than  their  understanding.  .  . 
In  the  same  spirit  the  writers  of  this  party  have  con- 
tributed to  the  religious  literature  of  the  day  many  ad- 
mirable  works  which  under  the  guise  of  fiction  teach 
the  purest  Christianity,  and  exemplify  its  bearing  in 
every  detail  of  common  life.  To  the  training  of  child- 
hood especially  they  have  rendered  most  valuable  aid, 
by  thus  embodying  the  precepts  of  the  Gospel.  But 
we  need  not  do  more  than  allude  to  works  so  universally 
known  and  valued  as  those  of  Miss  Sewell,  Mr.  Adams, 
and  Bishop  Wilberforce.  Again  the  revival  of  the 
Higli  Church  party  has  effected  an  important  improve- 
ment among  the  clergy.  Many  of  these  were  prejudiced 
by  hereditary  dislike  against  the  doctrines  and  the  per- 
sons of  the  Evangelicals,  and  by  this  prejudice  were  re- 
pelled from  religion.  But  under  the  name  of  ortho- 
doxy and  the  banner  of  High  Church,  they  have  wil- 
lingly received  truth  against  which,  had  it  come  to  them 
in  another  shape,  they  would  have  closed  their  ears  and 

1  Conybeare,  Essays  Ecclesiastical  and  Social,  p.  106. 


;U6  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

hearts.  A  better  spirit  has  thus  been  breathed  into 
hundreds  who  but  for  this  new  movement  would  have 
remained  as  their  fathers  were  before  them,  mere  Nim- 
rods,  Ramrods,  or  Fishing-rods." * 

Of  all  the  men  engaged  in  the  Tractarian  enterprise 
there  was  no  one  in  whose  religious  and  personal  history 
a  deeper  public  interest  concentrated  than  in  John 
Henry  Newman.  His  ardent  espousal  of  the  High 
Church  cause  collected  many  friends  about  him  at  the 
same  time  that  it  organized  numerous  enemies.  But  he 
did  not  inquire  concerning  the  number  of  his  friends  or 
foes,  for  he  valued  sincerity  higher  than  favor  or  opposi- 
tion. His  previous  history  was  not  without  incident. 
Thirteen  years  before  the  Tracts  for  the  Times  were 
published,  he  had  been  engaged  in  a  controversy  con 
cerning  baptismal  regeneration,  in  which  he  defended 
the  evangelical  side.2  Subject  to  various  inner  conflicts, 
and  greatly  influenced  by  the  party-spirit  which  ran 
high,  he  finally  entered  the  communion  of  the  Roman 
Catholic  Church.  His  view  of  the  development  of 
Christian  doctrine  is  very  favorable  to  his  adopted  faith. 
Development  can  be  applied  to  anything  which  has  real 
vital  power ;  it  is  the  key  that  unlocks  the  mystery  of 
all  growth ;  any  philosophy  or  policy,  Christianity  in- 
cluded, requires  time  for  its  comprehension  and  perfec- 
tion. The  highest  truths  of  inspiration  needed  only  the 
longer  time  and  deeper  thought  for  their  fall  elucida- 
tion, for  perfection  can  be  reached  only  by  trials  and 
sore  conflicts.  A  philosophy  or  sect  is  purer  and 
stronger  when  its  channel  has  grown  deep  and  broad 
by  the  flow  of  time.  Its  vital  element  needs  disengage- 
ment from  that  which  is  foreign  and  temporary,  and  its 

1  Essays  Ecclesiastical  and  Social,  pp.  106-108. 
*  National  Review,  Oct.,  1856. 


FATHER    NEWMAN    AND    KINGSLEY.  517 

beginning  is  no  measure  of  its  capabilities  or  scope.  At 
first  no  one  knows  what  it  is  or  what  it  is  worth,  since 
it  seems  in  suspense  which  way  to  go ;  but  notwithstand- 
ing this,  it  strikes  out  and  develops  all  its  hidden  world 
of  force.  Surrounding  things  change,  but  these  changes 
only  contribute  to  its  development.  Here  below,  to 
live  is  to  change,  and  to  be  perfect  is  to  have  changed 
often.  This  is  all  true  of  Christianity;  the  lapse  of 
years,  instead  of  injuring  it,  has  only  brought  out  its 
power.1 

These  hints  furnish  a  specimen  of  the  ideal  robe  in 
which  Father  Newman  clothes  Romanism.  But  it  will 
take  a  stronger  intellect  than  his  to  show  any  harmony 
between  his  theory  of  development  and  the  history  of 
the  papacy.  He  has  once  more  assumed  the  pen  of  the 
controversialist.  In  the  January  number  of  MaomiUaris 
Magazine,  1864,  Kingsley,  in  a  review  of  Froude's  His- 
tory of  the  reign  of  Queen  Elizabeth,  said,  "  Truth  for 
its  own  sake  has  never  been  a  virtue  with  the  Roman 
clergy.  Father  Newman  informs  us  that  it  need  not  be, 
and,  on  the  whole,  ought  not  to  be ;  that  cunning  is  the 
weapon  which  Heaven  has  given  to  the  saints  where- 
with to  withstand  the  brute  man's  force  of  the  wicked 
world,  which  marries  and  is  given  in  marriage."  The 
venerable  Father  being  thus  assailed  has  given  vent  to 
his  indignation  by  a  defense  of  his  life,  under  the  title 
of  Apologia  Pro  Vita  Sua.  It  abounds  in  rare  touches 
of  satire  ;  while  Kingsley,  in  his  reply,  indicates  excite- 
ment and  bitterness. 

The  younger  brother,  Francis  William  Newman, 
has  led  a  sad  and  changeful  life.  It  has  many  features 
in  common  with  Blanco  White,  both  of  whom  betray 
the  destructive  absence  of  a  positive  evangelical  faith.  In 

1  Development  of  Christian  Doctrine.     Second  Edition.     London,  1846. 


518  HISTOK?    OF    RAriONALISM. 

some  skeptics  there  is  a  strength  of  will  which  gives  a 
successful  appearance  to  their  cause  in  spite  of  all  their 
doubts  ;  but  when  the  will  is  subjected  to  the  domina- 
tion of  opinion  ;  when  religion,  whether  true  or  false,  is 
not  an  appendage  but  the  principle  of  life,  the  power 
of  mere  sentiment  is  fully  manifested.  The  younger 
Newman  is  an  illustration  of  the  position  in  which  one 
is  left  when  he  throws  himself  into  the  arms  of  a  false 
creed. 

He  reveals  his  inner  life  in  the  Phases  of  Faith, 
one  of  the  most  touching  pieces  of  biography  in  the 
realm  of  literature.  While  a  student  at  Oxford,  he  be- 
came enamored  with  the  "  Oriel  heresy  about  Sunday." 
One  by  one  the  views  of  the  standard  authorities  of 
the  Church  lost  their  hold  upon  him,  and  he  imbibed 
the  opinion  that  the  Old  Testament  is  not  really  the 
rule  of  life,  according  to  the  Pauline  idea ;  infant  bap- 
tism is  an  excrescence  of  a  post-apostolic  age,  and  Wall's 
attempt  to  trace  it  to  the  Apostles  a  decided  failure ; 
Episcopacy  has  been  so  contemptibly  represented  by 
incumbents,  some  of  whom  opposed  the  Missionary  and 
Bible  Societies,  that  it  is  not  entitled  to  respect ;  and 
the  Church  Fathers  are  greatly  overrated,  Clement 
alone  being  respectable. 

Unable  to  find  any  theological  resting-place,  New- 
man went  as  a  quasi-missionary  to  Bagdad.  He  re- 
turned to  Oxford  and  gave  himself  up  to  his  increasing 
doubts.  Finally,  becoming  a  Unitarian,  the  Scriptures 
present  new  difficulties  ;  Christianity  has  beeu  too  highly 
praised  and  flattered ;  and  has  had  the  credit  of  doing  a 
great  deal  which  it  has  had  no  share  in  effecting.  The 
Bible  has  not  been  found  able  to  cope  with  fresh  evils ; 
and  Romanism  became  corrupt  and  vicious  with  that 
book  in  the  hands  of  the  priesthood.     But  dissatisfied  as 


FIRST    BROAD    CHURCH.  519 

Newman  is  with  the  present,  he  takes  a  cheerful  look 
npon  the  future.  "  The  age  is  ripe,"  he  says,  "  for  some- 
thing better,  for  a  religion  which  shall  combine  the  ten- 
derness, humility,  and  disinterestedness  which  are  the 
glory  of  the  present  Christianity,  with  that  activity  of 
intellect,  untiring  pursuit  of  truth,  and  strict  adherence 
to  impartial  principle  which  the  schools  of  modern 
science  embody  When  a  spiritual  church  has  its  senses 
exercised  to  discern  good  and  evil,  judges  of  right  and 
wrong  by  an  inward  power,  proves  all  things,  and  holds 
fast  that  which  is  good,  fears  no  truth,  but  rejoices  in 
being  corrected,  intellectually  as  well  as  morally,  it  will 
not  be  liable  to  '  be  carried  to  and  fro '  by  shifting 
wind  of  doctrine.  It  wall  indeed  have  movement, 
namely,  a  steady  onward  one,  as  the  schools  of  science 
have  had  since  they  left  off  to  dogmatize,  and  ap- 
proached God's  world  as  learners ;  but  it  will  lay  aside 
disputes  of  words,  eternal  vacillations,  mutual  ill-will 
and  dread  of  new  light,  and  will  be  able,  without  hy- 
pocrisy, to  proclaim  '  peace  on  earth  and  good  will  to- 
ward men,'  even  toward  those  who  reject  its  beliefs 
and  sentiments  concerning  God  and  his  glory."  l 

The  First  Broad  Church.  The  division  of  the 
Broad  Church  into  two  parties  has  been  produced  by 
the  recent  discussion.  The  First  Broad  Church  corre- 
sponds in  the  main  with  philosophical  Rationalism.  It 
commenced  with  Coleridge,  was  interpreted  principally 
by  Hare,  was  defended  by  the  chaste  and  vigorous 
pen  of  Arnold,  and  is  now  represented  by  Maurice, 
Kingsley,  and  Stanley.  It  caunot  be  said  to  have  a 
distinct  creed.  Its  members  beinar  attached  to  the 
Established  Church,  they  are  distinguished  peculi- 
arly    for   their    method   of  interpretation    of   the    ar- 

1  Phases  of  Faith,  pp.  233,  234.     American  Edition. 


520  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM 

tides  of  faith.  "  The  Broad  Church  teachers  give  us 
readings  of  each  dogma  of  the  Atonement  and  Future 
Punishment."  1  They  avow  the  main  doctrines  of  the 
Gospel,  but  in  such  a  modified  sense  that,  they  say,  tht 
same  were  held  virtually  by  all  Christians  in  every  age  ; 
by  Loyola  and  Xavier,  not  less  than  by  Latimer  and 
Ridley.  They  conceive  the  essence  of  Popery  to  con- 
sist, not  in  points  of  metaphysical  theology,  but  in  the 
ascription  of  magic  virtue  to  outward  acts.  All  who  be- 
lieve the  Scriptures  are,  in  their  opinion,  members  of  the 
household  of  faith.  Salvation  does  not  depend  upon  the 
ritual  but  upon  the  life ;  the  fruits  of  the  Spirit  are  the 
sole  criteria  of  the  Spirit's  presence.  They  give  prom- 
inence to  the  idea  of  the  visible  Church  when  they  hold 
the  Church  to  be  a  Society  divinely  instituted  for  the 
purpose  of  manifesting  God's  presence,  and  bearing  wit- 
ness to  his  attributes,  by  their  reflection  in  its  ordi- 
nances and  in  its  members.  If  its  ideal  were  fully  em- 
bodied in  its  actual  constitution  "  it  would  remind  us 
daily  of  God,  and  work  upon  the  habits  of  our  life  as 
insensibly  as  the  air  we  breathe.2  For  this  end,  it  would 
revive  "  daily  services,  frequent  communions,  memorials 
of  our  Christian  calling,  presented  to  our  notice  in 
crosses  and  wayside  oratories ;  commemorations  to  holy 
men  of  all  times  and  countries ;  religious  orders,  espe- 
cially of  women,  of  different  kinds  and  under  different 
rules,  delivered  only  from  the  snare  and  sin  of  per- 
petual vows."  8 

The  special  defender  of  these  views  of  the  visible 
Church,  the  late  Dr.  Thomas  Arnold,  of  Rugby,  was  a 
man  of  great  industry,  profound  erudition,  and  extraor 

1  Miss  Cobbe,  Broken  Lights,  p.  63.     London  Edition. 
1  Arnold,  Sermons,  vol.  iv.,  p.  307. 
*  Ibid.  Introduction,  p.  66. 


aknold's  opinions.  521 

dinary  power  and  tact  in  the  management  of  youth. 
His  sermons,  delivered  to  his  pupils  at  Rugby,  were 
short,  and  usually  written  just  before  delivery  in  the 
school-chapel  on  Sabbath  afternoons.1  He  interested 
himself  in  all  questions  of  reform,  education,  politics, 
and  literature.  But  he  is  best  known  as  one  of  the 
leaders  of  the  Broad  Church,  and  in  this  light  his 
theological  opinions  may  be  considered  a  fair  sam- 
ple of  the  theology  adopted  by  that  party  in  its  earlier 
and  purer  days.  With  him,  inspiration  is  not  equivalent 
to  a  communication  of  the  divine  perfections.  Paul  ex- 
pected the  world  would  come  to  an  end  in  the  genera- 
tion then  existing.  The  Scripture  narratives  are  not 
only  about  divine  things,  but  are  themselves  divinely 
framed  and  superintended.  Inspiration  does  not  raise 
a  man  above  his  own  time,  nor  make  him,  even  in  re- 
spect to  that  which  he  utters  when  inspired,  perfect  in 
goodness  and  wisdom  ;  but  it  so  overrules  his  language 
that  it  shall  contain  a  meaning  more  than  his  own  mind 
was  conscious  of,  and  thus  give  to  it  a  character  of  di- 
vinity, and  a  power  of  perpetual  application.2 

According  to  Arnold,  Christ  was  the  sum  of  the 
Bible,  and  the  centre  of  all  truth.  We  cannot  come 
to  God  directly ;  Christ  is  to  us  in  place  of  God  ;  and 
he  is  God,  for  to  hold  the  contrary  would  be  idola- 
try. Christ  suffered  for  the  Church,  not  only  as  a 
man  may  suffer  for  man  by  being  involved  in  evils 
through  the  fault  of  another,  and  by  his  example 
awakening  in  others  a  spirit  of  like  patience  and  self- 
devotion,  but  in  a  higher  and  more  complete  sense,  as 

Bibliotheca  Sacra.  Jan.  1858.  An  excellent  summary  of  the  opin 
ions  of  Dr.  Arnold. 

*  Stanley,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Arnold.    American  Edition,  p 
185. 


522  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

suffering  for  them,  the  just  for  the  unjust,  that  they,  foj 
his  sake,  should  be  regarded  by  God  as  innocent.  In  a 
deep  sense  of  moral  evil,  more,  perhaps,  than  in  any- 
thing else,  a  saving  knowledge  of  God  abides.  Sin 
must  not  be  lightly  considered.  Christ's  death  shows 
it  to  be  an  exceeding  evil;  and  the  actions  of  whole 
days  and  weeks,  passed  as  they  are  by  too  many  in 
utter  carelessness,  are  nothing  but  one  mass  of  sin ;  aud 
no  one  thing  in  them  has  been  sanctified  by  the  thought 
of  God  or  of  Christ. 

The  penalty  of  sin,  according  to  Arnold,  is  one  of 
the  revelations  of  Scripture  which  men  are  least  inclined 
to  hear.  It  will  be  true  of  every  one  of  us,  that,  unless 
we  turn  to  Christ,  it  had  been  better  that  we  were  never 
born.  If  we  fail  of  the  grace  of  God  there  is  reserved 
for  us  an  indescribable  misery.  Conversion  is  the  de- 
velopment of  Christian  life.  It  is  growth.  We  must 
be  chauged  during  the  three  score  and  ten  years  of  our 
life,  not  in  the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  but  through  a  long 
period  of  prayer  and  watchfulness,  laboring  slowly  and 
with  difficulty  to  get  rid  of  our  evil  nature.1  By  con- 
stant repentance  and  faith  we  ripen  for  heaven.  Justifi- 
cation by  faith  is  a  reliance  on  what  God  has  done 
for  us ;  faith  in  Christ  is  not  only  faith  in  his  having 
died  for  us,  but  in  him  as  our  present  Saviour  by  his 
life.  It  is  throwing  ourselves  upon  him  in  all  things, 
as  our  Redeemer,  Saviour,  Head,  of  whom  we  are  mem 
bers,  and  desire  our  life  only  for  Him.  Our  dependence 
in  Christ  is  not  once  only,  but  perpetual. 

Arnold  attached  paramount  importance  to  a  propei 
understanding  of  the  Church  and  its  relations  to  the 
State.  He  held  that  the  work  of  a  Christian  Church 
and  State  is  absolutely  one  and  the  same,  and  that  the 

1  Interpretation  of  Scripture,  p.  ±93. 


DEAN    STA1SXEY. 


523 


full  development  of  the  former  in  its  perfect  form  as 
the  Kingdom  of  God,  will  be  an  effectual  means  for 
the  removal  of  all  evil  and  the  promotion  of  good. 
There  can  be  no  perfect  Church  or  State  without  their 
blending  into  one.1  The  Church,  during  her  impeifect 
state, is  deficient  in  power;  the  State,  in  the  like  condi- 
tion is  deficient  in  knowledge ;  one  judges  amiss  of  man's 
highest  happiness,  the  other  discerns  it  truly,  but  has 
not  the  power  on  a  large  scale  to  attain  it.  But  when 
blended  into  one,  the  power  and  knowledge  become 
happily  united ;  the  Church  has  become  sovereign,  and 
the  State  has  become  Christian.2  The  Church  has  its 
living  and  redeemed  members ;  it  may  have  those  who 
are  craving  to  be  admitted  within  its  shelter,  being 
convinced  that  God  is  in  it  of  a  truth  ;  but  beyond 
these,  he  who  is  not  with  it  is  against  it.8 

In  intimate  connection  with  Arnold  stands  the  name 
of  his  friend  and  biographer,  Arthur  P.  Stanley,  Dean 
of  Westminster,  for  some  years  a  writer  of  celebrity  in 
England.  Two  late  volumes  on  the  Eastern  and  Jew- 
ish Churches  have  given  him  a  standing  occupied  by 
few  theologians  in  the  old  or  the  new  world.     His  style 

is  fforsreous   and  enchanting,  and  his  Rationalistic  ten- 
ts     o  o» 

dencies  so  subdued  and  covert  that  few  would  suspect 
him  of  sympathy  with  the  Broad  Church  theology  of 
the  last  ten  years'  growth.  In  his  work  on  Sinai  and 
Palestine  he  aimed  to  delineate  the  outward  events  of 
the  Old  and  New  Testament  in  such  a  way  that  they 
should  come  home  with  a  new  power  to  those  who, 
by  long  familiarity,  had  almost  ceased  to  regard  them 
its  historical  truth;  and  so  to  bring  out  their  inward 

1  Stanley,  Life  and  Correspondence,  pp.  341,  367. 

*  Fragment  on  the  Church,  p.  226. 

•  Christian  Life,  its  Course,  &c,  p.  358. 
35 


524  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

spirit  that  the  more  complete  realization  of  their  out 
ward  form  should  not  degrade  but  exalt  the  faith  of 
which  they  are  the  vehicle.  But  in  subsequent  works, 
Dean  Stanley  has  clearly  departed  from  an  evangelical 
position,  and  we  now  find  him  in  open  sympathy  with 
the  Broad  Church.  This  tendency  was  foreshadowed  in 
his  History  of  the  Jewish  Church.  He  describes  mir- 
acles as  one  who  prefers  to  omit,  rather  than  state, 
his  real  objections  to  their  reception.  He  seems  to  be- 
lieve in  Israel  as  an  inspired  people,  more  than  in  the 
Old  Testament  as  a  plenarily  inspired  book.  He  allows 
searching  criticism  into  the  Hebrew  text,  and  does  not 
seem  disturbed  by  evidences  of  errors,  contradictions, 
and  phantasy.  He  does  not  know  whether  the  Israel- 
ites were  in  Egypt  two  hundred  and  fifteen,  four  hun- 
dred and  thirty,  or  one  thousand  years, — thus  leaving 
an  important  question  unsettled.  Neither  does  he  de- 
cide, with  or  against  Colenso,  whether  the  number  of 
armed  Israelites  who  left  Egypt  was  six  hundred  or  six 
hundred  thousand  men.  He  implies  that  monothe- 
ism was  unknown  before  Abraham,  and  that  the  name 
Jehovah  was  not  known  to  Abraham,  Isaac,  or  Jacob. 
He  cannot  tell  how  the  Israelites  were  supported  in 
their  journeyings ;  and  ascribes  the  priesthood  to  an 
Egyptian  origin.  If  we  only  admit  the  above  arith- 
metical errors,  and  give  up  the  Mosaic  authorship  of 
the  Pentateuch,  he  thinks  we  should  remove  at  one 
stroke  some  of  the  main  difficulties  of  the  Mosaic  nar- 
rative.1 

But  Stanley  has  exposed  his  Broad  Church  sympa 
thies  more  in  a  late  review  article  than  in  any  formal 
volume.2     It  is  a  discussion  of  the  judicial  proceedings 

1  American  Theological  Review,  July,  1863. 
a  Edinburgh  Review,  July,  1864. 


Stanley's  views.  525 

m  connection  with  two  autho?*s  of  the  Essays  and  He- 
views.  His  theme  permits  a  wide  range,  and  he  there- 
fore dwells  at  length  upon  the  whole  question  of  min- 
isterial teaching.  He  considers  the  final  acquittal  of 
the  essayists  one  of  the  most  gratifying  events  of  the 
day  According  to  him,  the  questions  raised  by  the 
work  are,  with  few  exceptions,  of  a  kind  altogether  be- 
side and  beyond  the  range  over  which  the  formularies 
of  the  Church  extend.  No  passage  in  any  of  the  five 
clerical  essayists  contradicts  any  of  the  formularies  of 
the  Church  in  a  degree  at  all  comparable  to  the  direct 
collision  which  exists  between  the  High  Church  party 
and  the  Articles,  or  the  Low  Church  party  and  the 
Prayer-Book ;  on  the  points  debated  in  the  Essays  and 
Reviews  the  Articles  and  Prayer-Book  are  alike  silent. 
Stanley  rejoices  that  of  the  thirty-two  charges  presented 
against  Mr.  Wilson  and  Dr.  Williams  all  were  dismissed 
but  five,  and  that  for  these  "there  was  no  heavier  pen- 
alty than  a  year's  suspension.''  He  is  in  ecstacy  that  the 
judgment  in  the  case  of  these  two  men  has  established 
the  legal  position  of  those  who  have  always  claimed  the 
right  of  free  inquiry  and  latitude  of  opinion  equally  for 
themselves  and  for  both  the  other  sections  of  the 
Church.  By  the  issue  of  the  litigation,  he  claims  that 
great  victories  have  been  won,  that  henceforth  ample 
freedom  is  left  to  all  detailed  criticism  of  the  Sacred 
Text,  so  long  as  the  canonicity  of  no  canonical  book  is 
denied,  and  that  the  questions  whether  there  be  "  one 
Isaiah  or  two,  two  Zechariahs  or  three,  who  wrote  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  and  who  wrote  the  Pentateuch, 
whether  Job  and  Josiah  be  historical  or  parabolical, 
whether  the  Fifty-third  Chapter  of  Isaiah  or  the  Second 
Psalm  be  directly  or  indirectly  prophetic,  what  are  the 
precise  limits  of  the  natural  and  practical,  what  is  the 


526  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

weight  of  internal  and  external  evidence,  whether  the 
Apocalypse  refers  to  the  Emperor  Nero  or  to  the  Pope 
-of  Rome  ;  are  to  be  settled  according  to  the  individual 
opinion  of  every  clergyman  of  the  Established  Church." 
Stanley  sneers  at  the  Declaration  of  the  Oxford  Com 
raittee  sent  to  every  Clergyman  of  England  and  Ire- 
laud,  "  with  an  adjuration,  for  the  love  of  God  and 
out  of  duty  to  the  souls  of  men,  to  sign  it."  That 
Declaration  was  a  protest  against  the  acquittal  of  the 
Essayists;  and  Stanley  rejoices  over  the  fact,  that, 
though  "  every  influence  was  used  to  get  signatures  to 
it,  and  was  so  concealed  as  to  enlist  the  support  of 
High  and  Low  Church  parties,"  the  result  was  the  sig- 
nature of  only  one  third  of  the  London  clergy,  nine 
Professors  at  Oxford  and  one  at  Cambridge,  eight  out 
of  the  thirty  English  deans,  two  of  the  Head  Mas- 
ters of  the  Public  Schools,  and  only  six  out  of  the 
fifty  clerical  contributors  to  Smith's  Dictionary  of  the 
Hible ;  that  more  than  one  half  of  the  rural  clergy 
stood  altogether  aloof  from  the  document ;  and  that 
when  it  was  presented  at  Lambeth  only  four  of  the 
twenty-eight  Bishops  loaned  their  countenance  to  its 
formal  reception.  Stanley  looks  into  the  future  and 
sees  permanent  blessings  bestowed  upon  the  country  by 
the  "  timely  decision  of  the  highest  Court  of  Appeal '" 
that  it  has  "  no  jurisdiction  or  authority  to  settle  mat 
ters  of  faith,  or  to  determine  what  ought  in  any  partic 
ular  to  be  the  doctrine  of  the  Church  of  England,  since 
its  duty  extends  only  to  the  consideration  of  that 
which  is  by  law  established  to  be  the  doctrine  of  the 
Church  of  England,  upon  the  true  and  legal  construc- 
tion of  her  Articles  and  formularies."  He  is  also  pleased 
that  the  Supreme  Court  of  Appeal  has  refused  to  pledge 
itself  and  the  Church  to  any  popular  theory  of  the  mode 


^DIFFERENCE    OF   FIRST   BROAD    CHURCH.  527 

of  justification  or  of  the  future  punishmeut  of  the  wick- 
ed ;  and  that  it  now  stands  declared  that  it  is  no  doc- 
trine of  the  Church  of  England  that  "  every  part  of  the 
Bible  is  inspired,  or  is  the  word  of  God."  The  Dean 
also  looks  with  complacency  upon  what  he  declares 
to  be  a  fact,  and  which  we  are  startled  to  hear ;  that 
*  the  belief  in  endless  punishment  is  altogether  fluctuat- 
ing, or  else  expresses  itself  in  forms  wholly  untenable 
.  .  that  the  doctrine  of  endless  torments,  if  held, 
is  not  practically  taught  by  the  vast  majority  of  the 
Clergymen  of  England." 

The  First  Broad  Church  will  not  accept  entirely  the 
theology  contained  in  the  Essays  and  Reviews,  and 
complains  of  them  that  they  are  "  almost  entirely  nega- 
tive ;  hinting  at  faults  in  the  prevalent  religious  opin- 
ions of  the  day,  but  not  investigating  them  ;  indicating 
dislike  to  certain  obligations  which  are  imposed  upon 
clergymen,  but  not  stating  or  considering  what  those 
obligations  are ;  leaving  an  impression  upon  devout 
Christians  that  something  in  their  faith  is  untenable 
when  they  want  to  find  in  it  what  is  tenable ;  suggest- 
ing that  earnest  infidels  in  this  day  have  much  to 
urge  in  behalf  of  their  doubts  and  difficulties;  never 
fairly  asking  what  they  have  to  urge,  what  are  their 
doubts  and  difficulties."  a 

On  the  other  hand,  the  First  Broad  Church  will  not 
unite  in  the  organized  opposition  to  that  work,  because 
the  denunciations  and  appeals  "  took  an  almost  entirely 
negative  form ;  they  contradicted  and  slandered  objec- 
tions they  were  not  assertions  of  a  belief;  they  led 
Christians  away  from  the  Bible,  from  the  creeds 
which  they  confess  to  certain  notions  about  the 
creeds  from  practice  to  disputation.     They  met  no  real 

1  Miss  Oobbe,  Broken  Lights,  p.  63.     London  Edition. 


528  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

doubts  in  the  minds  of  unbelievers  ;  they  only  called 
for  the  suppression  of  all  doubts.  They  confounded  the 
opinions  of  the  day  with  the  faith  once  delivered  to  the 
saints.  They  tended  to  make  anonymous  journalists  the 
law-givers  of  the  Church.  They  tended  to  discourage 
•lergymen  from  expressing  manfully  what  is  in  their 
hearts,  lest  they  should  incur  the  charge  of  being  un- 
faithful to  their  vows.  They  tended  to  hinder  all  se- 
rious and  honest  co-operation  between  men  who  are  not 
bound  together  in  a  sectarian  agreement,  lest  they 
should  make  themselves  responsible  for  opinions  differ- 
ent from  their  own."  *  Thus,  while  the  First  Broad 
Church  occupies  a  neutral  ground  in  the  controversy 
now  rending  the  whole  structure  of  English  theology, 
its  moral  force  is  all  against  Evangelical  Christianity, 
and  in  favor  of  the  usurpations  of  Rationalism. 

But  the  theology  maintained  by  the  First  Broad 
Church  is  little  above  that  contained  in  the  Essays 
and  Reviews  and  similar  Rationalistic  publications. 
With  them,  the  Scriptures  are  better  than  any  other 
books  of  antiquity  because  they  contain  the  most  of 
God's  will,  not  because  they  alone  contain  his  will. 
"  These  books,'1  says  a  writer,  "  have  been  filtered  out, 
as  it  were,  under  his  guidance,  from  many  others  which, 
in  ages  gone  by,  claimed  a  place  beside  them,  and  are 
now  forgotten,  while  these  have  stood  for  thousands  of 
years,  and  are  not  likely  to  be  set  aside  now."  2  They 
are  indifferent  as  to  their  date,  authorship,  or  contents. 
"  Men  may  satisfy  themselves, "  the  same  writer  con- 
tinues, "  perhaps  if  I  have  time  to  give  to  the  study, 
they  may  satisfy  me — that  the  Pentateuch  was  the 
work  of  twenty  men ;    that  Baruch  wrote  a  part   of 

1  Tracts  for  Priests  and  People.     Preface,  pp.  3-5.     Am.  Edition. 
1  Hughes,  in  Tracts  for  Priests  and  People,  p.  28. 


VIEWS    ON    REDEMPTION.  529 

[saiah ;  that  David  did  not  write  the  Psalms,  or  the 
evangelists  the  gospels ;  that  there  are  interpolations 
here  and  there  in  the  original ;  that  there  are  numerous 
and  serious  errors  in  our  translation.  What  is  all  this 
to  me  ?  What  do  I  care  who  wrote  them,  what  is  the 
date  of  them,  what  this  or  that  passage  ought  to  be  ? 
They  have  told  me  what  I  wanted  to  know.  Burn 
every  copy  in  the  world  to-morrow,  you  don't  and  can't 
take  that  knowledge  from  me,  or  any  man."  l 

The  Mosaic  cosmogony  is  not  a  matter  of  great  con- 
sequence, but  on  a  par  with  other  cosmogonies,  none  of 
which  are  of  any  intrinsic  value.  "  If  all  cosmogonies 
were  to  disappear  to-morrow,"  says  Thomas  Hughes, 
"  I  should  be  none  the  poorer."  The  various  difficulties 
of  Scripture  are  not  of  sufficient  moment  to  occupy 
much  time  or  pains.  Let  the  people  be  made  to  under- 
stand the  liberal  interpretations  of  what  the  cultivated 
teachers  have  to  say,  and  that  will  be  enough  to  meet 
the  world's  wants.  Perhaps  it  is  with  secret  admiration 
of  Bunsen's  Bible-  Work,  the  greatest  exegetical  triumph 
of  Rationalism,  that  Kingsley  asks :  "  Who  shall  write 
as  a  people's  commentary  of  the  Bible  ?  " 

Redemption  is  accepted  in  the  Coleridgean  sense. 
It  is  a  term  which  does  not  express  a  Scriptural  fact, 
but  is  borrowed  from  earthly  transactions.  Christ's 
work  in  our  behalf  is  of  no  special  value  in  itself,  its 
known  effects  being  all  that  make  it  of  moment  to  the 
human  family.2  We  should  look  at  the  results  and  not 
at  the  cause.  The  sacrifice  which  Christ  made  was  one 
of  obedience  to  his  Father's  will ;  it  does  not  free  us 
and  elevate  us  above  the  curse  of  a  broken  law,  for,  in 
a  certain  sense,  the  law  has  never  been  broken  to  the 

1  Hughes,  in  Tracts  for  Priests  and  People,  p.  37. 
*  Garden,  Tracts  for  Priests  and  People,  p.  133. 


530  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

extent  that  the  evangelicals  claim,  nor  does  eternal 
punishment  harmonize  with  enlightened  and  liberal 
notions  of  Divine  mercy.  Miracles  are  in  danger  of 
being  worshiped  by  the  friends  of  revelation.  They 
have  the  misfortune  of  an  improper  term ;  wonders 
would  be  a  far  better  word.  Why  not  accept  them 
in  the  domain  of  faith,  since  we  meet  with  them  in 
science  ? *  Miracles  of  this  kind,  "  wonders."  are  wil- 
lingly conceded,  for  they  are  not  suspensions  or  viola- 
tions of  the  order  of  nature,  but  natural  phenomena, 
whose  laws  we  may  not  understand.  The  miracles  of 
the  New  Testament  are  purely  natural ;  but  the  people 
did  not  comprehend  the  laws  which  gave  them  birth, 
and  hence  they  magnified  them.  "  Where  the  people 
believed,1'  says  Mr.  Davies,  "  rightly  or  wrongly,  in  evil 
spirits  and  sorcery,  in  malignant  and  disorderly  influ- 
ences proceeding  from  the  spiritual  world,  there  the 
powers  of  the  true  kingdom,  the  powers  of  order  and 
freedom  and  beneficence,  were  put  forth  in  acts  which 
appealed  directly  to  the  minds  of  the  ignorant  and 
superstitious,  and  which  proclaimed  an  authority 
stronger  than  that  of  demons.  The  common  multitudes 
of  Judea  were  of  the  class  which  thus  required  to  be 
treated  like  spoiled  and  frightened  children."  2 

The  Second  Broad  Church.  This  party  maintains 
the  avowed  Rationalism  of  Jowett,  the  Essays  and  B,2> 
views,  and  Colenso.  Miss  Cobbe,  in  defining  the  points 
of  difference  between  it  and  the  First  Broad  Church, 
says  of  the  latter,  "  It  holds  that  the  doctrines  of  tlw 
Bible  and  the  church  can  be  perfectly  harmonized  with 
the  results  of  modern  thought  by  a  new  but  legitimate 
exegesis   of    the   Bible   and   interpretation   of   chuich 

1  Davies,  Tracts  for  Priests  and  People,  p.  167. 
a  Ibid.  p.  167. 


SECOND    BROAD    CHURCH.  531 

formulae.  The  Second  Broad  Church  seems  prepared 
to  admit  that  in  many  cases  they  can  only  be  harmon- 
ized by  the  sacrifice  of  biblical  infallibility.  The  First 
Broad  Church  has  recourse,  to  harmonize  them,  to  va- 
rious logical  processes,  but  principally  to  the  one  de- 
scribed in  the  last  chapter,  of  diverting  the  student,  at 
al  difficult  points,  from  criticism  to  edification.  The 
Second  Broad  Church  uses  no  ambiguity,  but  frankly 
avows  that  when  the  Bible  contradicts  science,  the 
Bible  must  be  in  error.  The  First  Broad  Church  main- 
tains that  the  inspiration  of  the  Bible  differs  in  hind  as 
well  as  in  degree  from  that  of  other  books.  The  Second 
Broad  Church  appears  to  hold  that  it  differs  in  degree 
but  not  in  kind.  This  last  is  the  crucial  point  of  the 
differences  of  the  two  parties,  and  of  one  of  the  most 
important  controversies  of  modern  times."  x  The  First 
Broad  Church  has  made  antagonism  to  the  doctrine  of 
endless  punishment  one  of  its  great  specialties,  while 
the  Second  Broad  Church  has  made  its  most  violent 
assaults  upon  the  evangelical  view  of  the  inspiration  of 
the  Scriptures.  The  position  of  the  latter  is  not  fully 
defined.  We  may  suppose,  however,  that  in  due  time 
its  apologists  will  assume  an  organized  form,  and  per- 
haps produce  their  systematic  theology. 

We  regret  that  the  general  opposition  on  the  part 
of  the  clergy  to  the  theology  of  the  Essays  and  Reviews, 
on  the  first  appearance  of  that  work,  has  not  been  sus- 
tained. The  Broad  Church  has  therefore  acquired 
many  new  adherents  within  the  last  two  years.  It  is 
impossible  to  classify  all  the  parties  according  to  theii 
exact  numerical  strength,  and  their  approximate  pro 
portions,  in  round  numbers,  must  answer  our  purpose. 
The  clergy  of  the  Church  of  England,  exclusive  of  the 

1  Broken  Lights,  pp.  73-74. 


532  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Irish,  amount  at  present  to  about  twenty  thousand,  at 
home  and  abroad.1  Making  allowance  for  two  thousand 
peasant  clergy  in  the  mountain  districts,  and  mission- 
aries in  foreign  lands,  the  remaining  eighteen  thousand 
may  be  classified  as  follows  . 

C  Normal  Type,— Anglican,  ....        3,600 

High  Church.    1  Exaggerated  Type, — Tractarian,       .        .         .        1,000 

£  Stagnant  Type,— High  and  Dry,        .  .        2,500 

C  Normal  Type, — Evangelical,      ....        3,500 

Low  Church.    ?  Exaggerated  Type, — Kecordite,         .        .  .        2,600 

(  Stagnant  Type, — Low  and  Slow,       .        .         .  700 

C  Normal  Type, — Theoretical  and  Anti-Theoreticai,     3,100 

Broad  Church.  1  Exaggerated  Type, — Extreme  Rationalists,      .      .        300 

(  Stagnant  Type, 700 

Twelve  years  ago  the  twenty-eight  Bishops  and  Arch- 
bishops of  England  stood  thus :  thirteen  belonged  to  the 
High  Church,  ten  to  the  Broad  Church,  and  five  to  the 
Low  Church,  A  distribution  made  at  the  present  time 
would  be  much  more  favorable  to  the  second  party.2 

It  is  a  remakable  feature  of  the  activity  of  theologi- 
cal opinion  in  England  that  the  same  division  of  par- 
ties which  exists  in  the  Established  Church  also  obtains 

1  Appleton's  American  Cyclopaedia.  Art.  Church  of  England.  Though 
the  writer  of  this  article  says  nothing  of  the  Irish  clergy,  he  has  not  in- 
cluded them,  of  course  ;  having  no  doubt  used  the  Clergy  List  of  England 
and  the  colonies  alone. 

1  We  have  based  our  division  of  the  English  clergy  upon  the  calcula- 
tion of  the  late  W.  J  Conybeare,  a  Fellow  in  the  University  of  Cambridge, 
and  joint  author  with  J.  S.  Howson,  of  Life  and  Epistles  of  St.  Paul. 
{Essays  Ecclesiastical  and  Social,  pp.  157-158.)  His  figures  applied  to  the 
year  1853,  but  we  have  included  the  subsequent  increase  of  the  clergy,  and 
distributed  the  additional  members  according  to  the  best  information  at 
command.  If  it  be  objected  that  we  have  classed  too  large  a  portion  in 
the  Broad  Church,  we  reply,  that  if  Dean  Stanley's  intimations  concerning 
the  absence  of  orthodox  faith  in  the  English  clergy  be  well  founded,  we 
have  fallen  far  short  of  attributing  to  that  body  a  sufficient  number  of 
members.     See  his  article  in  Edinburgh  Review,  July,  1864. 


FREETHINKERS    IN    DIFFERENT   SECTS.  533 

in  other  religious  bodies.  We  do  not  speak  of  the  Dis- 
senting Churches,  all  of  which  have  their  shades  of  sen- 
timent, but  of  the  smaller  and  less  influential  or- 
ganizatioos.  The  Jews,  Roman  Catholics,  Quakers,  and 
Unitarians  have  each  their  old  and  new  schools, — 
the  former  adhering  to  the  old  and  established  stand- 
ards, the  latter  striving  to  harmonize  with  modern 
science  and  free  inquiry.  The  Jews  have  their  Mosaic, 
Talmudic,  and  Phillipsohnic  groups, — the  last  taking  its 
name  from  its  leader,  and  corresponding  with  the  First 
Broad  Church  within  the  pale  of  Christianity.1  The 
Rationalistic  party  in  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  is  now 
aiming  to  harmonize  Popery  and  the  philosophy  of  the 
nineteenth  century.  It  has  no  distinctive  name,  but 
numbers  many  adherents.  The  Quakers,  besides  possess- 
ing a  strongly  conservative  wing,  have  their  advocates 
of  the  "  Inner  Light,"  who  are  pushing  this  destructive 
doctrine  "to  the  full  consequences  developed  by  the 
Second  Broad  Church  party  in  the  National  Church." 
The  Unitarians  are  divided  into  the  staid  disciples  of 
Priestley  and  Belsham,  and  the  New  School,  who  stand 
on  the  same  ground  with  Theodore  Parker  in  the  United 
States.  These  are  cordial  admirers  of  the  Essays  and 
Reviews,  and  would  rejoice  to  see  the  land  overspread 
with  radical  Rationalism. 

1  Phillipsohn,  Author  of  the  Religious  Idea  in  Judaism,  Islam,  and 
Christianity.     Translated  by  Miss  Ann  Goldschmidt. 


CHAPTER    XXII 1. 

THE  UNITED  STATES  :   THE  UNITARIAN  CHURCH— THE 
UNIVERSALISTS. 

The  aspect  of  novelty  in  the  religious  and  theologi 
cal  history  of  the  United  States,  is  unparalleled  in  the 
history  of  any  European  nation,  and  is  traceable  in  part 
to  the  peculiarities  of  our  political  origin  and  career. 
The  founders  of  our  government  were  wise  students  of 
the  philosophy  of  history,  and  it  was  their  opinion  that 
many  of  the  misfortunes  which  had  befallen  the  coun- 
tries of  the  Old  World,  were  produced  by  the  improper 
association  of  temporal  and  spiritual  authority.  They 
therefore  made  provision  for  the  permanent  separation 
of  Church  and  State.  Their  design,  however,  was  accom- 
plished only  by  degrees.  Previous  to  the  Revolution, 
but  two  States,  Rhode  Island  and  Pennsylvania,  permit- 
ted religious  toleration.  It  was  declared  in  Maryland 
in  17*76,  and  in  1786-89  was  carried  out  in  Virginia. 
The  general  government  took  the  matter  in  hand  in 
1791  ;  and,  in  that  year,  an  amendment  to  the  Constitu- 
tion of  the  United  States  was  adopted,  which  prohibited 
Congress  in  future  from  "  passing  any  law  establishing 
religion,  or  prohibiting  its  free  exercise."  * 

It  would  seem  that  our  forefathers  were  almost 
gifted  with  prophetic  vision  when  they  incorporated  this 
statute  with  those  other  laws,  which  have  contributed 

Smith,  History  of  the  Church  of  Christ  in  Chronological  Tables,  p.  74. 


ILN'ION    OF   CHURCH    AXD    STATE.  535 

so  much  to  our  prosperity.  It  would  not  have  been  iu 
harmony  with  their  spirit,  if,  while  constituting  an  inde- 
pendent government,  they  had  made  the  Church  de- 
pendent. 

The  principle  of  the  union  of  church  and  state  pre- 
supposes a  greater  degree  of  social  purity  than  has 
existed  in  any  nation.  Moreover,  the  Church  is  thereby 
led  to  assume  an  authority  to  which  she  has  no  claim 
and  which  Christ  never  intended  her  to  possess.  Mil 
ton,  whose  clear  and  practical  views  of  civil  and  eccle- 
siastical relations  were  only  equaled  by  his  lofty  poetic 
conceptions  of  man's  moral  nature  and  history,  says : 
"  When  the  church,  without  temporal  support,  is  able 
to  do  her  great  works  upon  the  enforced  obedience  of 
man,  it  argues  a  divinity  about  her.  But  when  she 
thinks  to  credit  and  better  her  spiritual  efficacy,  and  to 
win  herself  respect  and  dread  by  strutting  in  the  false 
vizard  of  worldly  authority,  it  is  evident  that  God  is 
not  there,  but  that  her  apostolic  virtue  is  departed  from 
her,  and  has  left  her  key-cold ;  which  she  perceiving,  as 
in  a  decayed  nature,  seeks  to  the  outward  fermentations 
and  chaiings  of  worldly  help  and  external  nourishes,  to 
fetch,  if  it  be  possible,  some  motion  into  her  extreme 
parts,  or  to  hatch  a  counterfeit  life  with  the  crafty  and 
artificial  heat  of  jurisdiction.  But  it  is  observable  that 
so  long  as  the  church,  in  true  imitation  of  Christ,  can 
be  content  to  ride  upon  an  ass,  carrying  herself  and  her 
government  along  in  a  mean  and  simple  guise,  she  may' 
be  as  she  is  a  Lion  of  the  tribe  of  Judah ;  and  in  her 
humility  all  men,  with  loud  hosannas,  will  confess  her 
greatness.  But  when,  despising  the  mighty  operation 
of  the  Spirit  by  the  weak  things  of  this  world,  she 
thinks  to  make  herself  bigger  and  more  considerably 
by  using  the  way  of  civil  force  and  jurisdiction,  as  she 


536  HISTORY    OR  RATIONALISM. 

sits  upon  this  Lion  she  changes  into  an  ass,  and  instead 
of  hosannas,  every  man  pelts  her  with  stones  and  dirt." ' 

The  peculiarities  which  have  characterized  the  his- 
tory of  the  American  church  are  well  defined,  and  of 
the  greatest  value  in  all  estimates  of  the  theological 
status  of  the  popular  mind.  They  are  grouped  by 
Professor  Smith  in  the  following  concise  terms :  "  First. 
It  is  not  the  history  of  the  conversion  of  a  new  people, 
but  of  the  transplantation  of  old  races,  already  Chris- 
tianized, to  a  new  theatre,  comparatively  untrameled 
by  institutions  and  traditions.  Second.  Independence 
of  the  civil  power.  Third.  The  voluntary  principle 
applied  to  the  support  of  religious  institutions.  Fourth. 
Moral  and  ecclesiastical,  but  not  civil  power,  the  means 
of  retaining  the  members  of  any  communion.  Fifth- 
Development  of  the  Christian  system  in  its  practical 
and  moral  aspects,  rather  than  in  its  theoretical  and 
theological.  Sixth.  Stricter  discipline  in  the  churches 
than  is  practicable  where  church  and  state  are  one.  .  Sev- 
enth. Increase  of  the  churches,  to  a  considerable  extent, 
through  revivals  of  religion,  rather  than  by  the  natural 
growth  of  the  children  in  an  establishment.  Eighth. 
Excessive  multiplication  of  sects ;  and  divisions  on 
questions  of  moral  reform."  2 

When  we  consider  the  intimate  relations  between 
France  and  this  country  during  the  first  stage  of  our 
national  existence,  it  becomes  a  matter  of  surprise  that 
French  infidelity  did  not  acquire  greater  influence  over 
our  people.  It  was  not  wholly  without  power,  and  the 
first  twenty-five  years  of  our  history  witnessed  greater 
religious  disasters  than  have  appeared  at  any  subse 
quent  time.     Still  it  may  be  said  with  truth  that  skep- 

1  The  Reason  of  Church  Government  against  Prelacy.     Ch.  II. 
'  History  of  the  Church  of  Christ,  dec,  p.  74. 


RISE   OF   THE    UNITARIAN    CHURCH.  537 

tical  tendencies  have  never  gained  a  permanent  position 
In  the  United  States,  though  our  immunity  from  their 
sway  has  not  been  the  result  of  indifference  toward  the 
great  movements  of  Europe.  The  American  has  ne^er 
been  a  cold  observer  of  the  hemisphere  from  which  his 
forefathers  came.  We  appropriate  the  treasures  of  the 
Old  World,  and  love  to  call  them  our  own.  We  are  as 
proud  of  the  martyrology  and  literature  of  England  as 
if  Latimer  and  Ridley  had  died  for  their  faith  on  Boston 
Common,  or  Shakspeare  and  Milton  had  lived  on  the 
banks  of  the  Hudson.  The  early  legislation  of  our 
government  having  left  the  individual  conscience  to  the 
exercise  of  its  own  convictions,  each  citizen  has  been 
more  interested  in  whatever  religious  opinions  might 
appear  from  European  sources. 

What  then  has  been  the  reception  in  America  of 
that  system  of  skepticism  which  has  produced  ravages 
on  the  Continent,  and  now  forbodes  evil  in  our  English 
mother-land  ?  Is  Rationalism  likely  to  run  its  destruc- 
tive cycle  in  the  United  States?  Has  the  American 
church  no  antidote  for  the  great  theological  errors  of 
the  present  age  ? 

The  denomination  most  intimately  associated  with 
Rationalistic  tendencies  is  the  Unitarian  Church.  Bos- 
ton is  its  centre,  and  New  England  the  principal  sphere 
of  its  existence. 

The  Venerable  Stoddard,  of  Northampton,  Massa- 
chusetts, became  convinced  that  the  custom  of  exclud- 
ing unregenerate  persons  from  the  sacrament  of  the 
Lord's  Supper  was  sinful ;  and  in  1708  published  a  ser- 
mon declaring  his  views  on  that  subject.  He  held  that 
the  participation  of  unregenerate  people  in  the  commun- 
ion was  highly  beneficial  to  them ;  and  that  it  was  in 
fact  a  means  by  which  they  might  become  regenerated 


538  HISTOHY    OF   KATIONALISM. 

He  defended  his  belief  so  zealously  that  he  soon  had 
the  pleasure  of  seeing  many  followers  gathering  about 
him.  The  doctrine  was  termed  the  Half-Way  Cove- 
nant System,  and  was  adopted  in  the  church  at  North- 
ampton. Jonathan  Edwards  succeeded  Stoddard,  who 
was  his  grandfather ;  and,  a  few  years  after  the  great 
revival  in  which  the  former  took  an  active  part,  he 
adopted  the  opinion  that  the  Half- Way  Covenant  was 
injurious.  Edwards  refused  to  practise  it,  and  in  his 
Treatise  on  the  Qualifications  for  Full  Communion,  he 
declared  the  necessity  of  regeneration.  He  was  ac- 
cordingly dismissed  from  his  church. 

This  was  the  germ  of  American  Unitarianism. 
Stoddard's  adherents  clung  to  their  loose  view  of  com- 
munion, while  the  friends  of  Edwards,  being  more 
spiritual,  and  many  of  them  the  fruits  of  the  White- 
fieldian  revival,  sustained  the  orthodox  construction 
with  energy.  The  Half- Way  Covenant  in  due  time 
called  a  party  into  existence,  which  "  avoided  all  soli- 
citude concerning  their  own  spiritual  condition  or  that 
of  others ;  were  repugnant  to  the  revival  spirit ;  must 
have  a  system  of  doctrines  which  could  contain  nothing 
to  alarm  the  fears  or  disturb  the  repose  of  the  members 
of  the  party.  The  doctrines  of  apostasy,  dependence  on 
grace  for  salvation,  necessity  of  atonement,  and  special 
influence  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  were  all  thought  to  be 
alarming  doctrines.  They  were  therefore  laid  aside 
silently  and  without  controversy.  Men  were  suffered 
to  forget  that  the  Son  of  God,  and  the  Spirit,  have  any- 
thing to  do  with  man's  salvation."  1 

King's  Chapel,  Boston,  was  the  first  Episcopal 
church  of  New  England.  Its  rector  leaving  with  the 
British  troops  upon  their  evacuation  of  the  town,  Rev. 

1  Baird,  Religion  in  America,  pp.  547-562. 


ORDINATION    OF    FREEMAN.  539 

James  Freeman  was  chosen  in  April,  1783,  to  occupy  the 
vacant  position.  The  services  of  the  church  were  con- 
ducted after  the  Episcopal  form,  the  Book  of  CommoD 
Prayer  being  still  used.  Mr.  Freeman's  views  under 
went  a  change,  and  he  delivered  a  course  of  doctrinal 
eennons  in  which  he  indicated  decided  Unitarian  pro- 
clivities. Accordingly  he  introduced  a  revised  liturgy, 
corresponding  with  Dr.  Samuel  Clarke's  Revision  of  the 
Liturgy  of  the  Church  of  England,  from  which  the  doc- 
trines of  the  Trinity  and  of  the  divinity  of  Christ  were 
excluded.  The  congregation  addressed  a  letter  to 
Bishop  Provost,  of  New  York,  in  which  inquiry  was 
made,  "  whether  ordination  of  Rev.  Mr.  Freeman  can  be 
obtained  on  terms  agreeable  to  him  and  to  the  proprie- 
tors of  this  church."  The  bishop  proposed  to  refer  the 
question  to  the  next  general  convention.  But  the  con- 
gregation, disliking  such  hesitation,  determined  to  ordain 
their  rector  themselves.  Accordingly,  on  November 
18th,  1787,  the  senior  warden  laid  his  hand  on  Mr. 
Freeman's  head,  and  pronounced  the  declaration  of 
ordination.  The  people  responded  "  Amen  ; "  and  thus 
was  effected  the  first  ordination  of  a  Unitarian  minister 
in  the  United  States.1 

Wide  circulation  had  already  been  given  to  Emlyn's 
Inquiry  into  the  Scripture  Account  of  Jesus  Christ, 
which,  in  1756,  had  been  republished  in  Boston  from  the 
English  edition.  Before  the  close  of  the  century  the 
doctrines  peculiar  to  Unitarianism  became  widely  dis- 
seminated in  that  city  and  in  other  portions  of  the  State. 
Belsham  issued  in  London,  1812,  his  Memoir  of  IAnd- 
sey,  which  contained  startling  disclosures  of  the  doings 
of  the  Unitarians  in  America.     Belsham's    informants 

1  Unitarianism  in  its  Actual  Condition.    Edited  by  Rev.  J.  R.  Beard, 
D.D.     pp.  1-4.     London,  1846. 


540  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

were  leading  Unitarians  of  Boston,  among  whom  was  Di. 
Freeman,  whose  letters  covered  a  period  of  sixteen  years, 
from  1796  to  1812.  He  communicated  all  the  secret 
movements,  growth,  and  dimensions  of  the  party.  Only 
a  few  copies  of  Belsham's  work  came  to  America,  and 
they  were  hidden,  lest  any  of  the  orthodox  might  see 
them.  Finally,  Dr.  Morse  obtained  one,  and  soon  pub- 
lished a  pamphlet  revealing  its  astounding  contents.  It 
now  came  to  light,  for  the  first  time,  that  Unitarianism 
was  a  strong  party ;  that  every  Congregational  church 
in  Boston,  except  the  Park  Street  and  Old  South,  had 
become  Unitarian ;  and  that  there  were  seventy-five 
churches  in  other  parts  of  New  England  which  had 
adopted  the  same  views.  The  Unitarians  were  now  com- 
pelled to  come  out  of  their  hiding-place,  and  the  ortho- 
dox watched  their  movements  with  intense  interest. 

The  zeal  of  the  adherents  of  Unitarianism,  however, 
did  not  diminish  by  exposure,  and  a  very  important 
event  occurred,  which  indicated  that  their  labors  were 
successful.  Dr.  Ware,  an  avowed  anti-Trinitarian,  was 
chosen  to  the  professorship  of  theology  in  Harvard 
College,  in  place  of  the  deceased  Dr.  Tappan.  The 
appointment  created  a  profound  excitement  among  the 
orthodox  clergy,  who  were  indignant  at  the  procedure. 
But  remonstrance  was  useless.  Unitarianism  was  tri- 
umphantly domiciled  at  Cambridge,  and  many  who 
designed  preaching  its  tenets  became  attendants  upon 
the  lectures  of  Professors  Ware  and  Andrews  Norton. 
As  a  probable  consequence  of  the  great  change  in 
Harvard,  the  Andover  Theological  Seminary  was  estab- 
lished,1— an  institution  which,  from  its  origin  to  the 
present  time,  has  shed   a  beneficent   lustre   upon   the 

1  Sprague,  Annals  of  the  American  Unitarian  Pulpit.     Historical  In- 
troduction, p.  xii. 


WILLIAM    ELLERY    CHAINING.  541 

entire  country.  Its  students  have  never  ceased  to  be 
ornaments  to  the  American  pulpit,  while  some  of  the 
number,  proving  themselves  worthy  successors  of  Carey, 
Marshman,  Coke,  and  Ward,  have  labored  in  heathen 
lands  with  apostolic  zeal. 

The  celebrated  controversy  between  Drs.  Channing 
and  Worcester,  occasioned  by  a  pamphlet  which  ap 
peared  in  Boston  in  1815,  under  the  title  of  American 
Unitarianism,  led  to  the  withdrawal  of  the  Unitarians 
from  the  orthodox,  and  their  formation  into  a  distinct 
organization.  Pursuing  an  aggressive  policy,  they  or- 
ganized congregations  in  various  parts  of  New  Eng- 
land, and  in  the  cities  of  Philadelphia,  Baltimore,  Wash- 
ington, and  Charleston.  This  was  the  heroic  age  of  the 
Unitarian  church  of  America. 

Channing  became  immediately  the  leader  of  the  new 
sect.  He  represents  the  best  type  of  Unitarianism. 
Pure  in  life,  ardent  in  his  attachments,  and  heroic  in 
spirit,  he  was  well  adapted  to  advance  the  cause  which 
he  had  espoused.  He  had  no  taste  for  controversy,  but 
the  circumstances  connected  with  the  prevalent  theology 
made  such  a  deep  impression  on  his  mind  that  he  felt  it 
his  duty  to  aid  in  the  revival  of  what  he  deemed  a 
more  liberal  faith.  Not  indorsing  the  extreme  Uni- 
tarianism of  Priestley  and  Belsham,  he  took  a  middle 
ground  between  it  and  New  England  Calvinism.  He 
was  attentively  heard  in  his  church  at  Boston,  and  was 
listened  to  by  large  audiences  wherever  he  preached  or 
lectured. 

His  writings  embrace  a  variety  of  topics,  the  chief 
of  which,  apart  from  religious  themes  proper,  are  sla- 
very, temperance,  education,  and  war.  Within  a  few 
years  his  views  have  attracted  increased  attention  ira 
Europe.     In  France,  MM.  Laboulaye,  de  Remusat,  and 


542  HISTORY    OF   RATION ALISM. 

Renan  have  discussed  them  at  length.  Of  his  mental 
transitions,  an  admiring  writer  says :  "  From  Kant's 
doctrine  of  the  reason  he  derived  deeper  reverence  for 
the  essential  powers  of  man  ;  by  Schelli  ng's  intimations 
of  the  Divine  Life,  everywhere  manifested,  he  was  made 
more  devoutly  conscious  of  the  universal  agency  of  God ; 
and  he  was  especially  delighted  with  the  heroic  stoicism 
of  Fichte  and  his  assertion  of  the  grandeur  of  the  hu- 
man will.  But  for  his  greatest  pleasure  and  best  dis- 
cipline he  was  now  indebted  to  Wordsworth,  whom  he 
esteemed  next  to  Shakspeare,  and  whose  ' Excursion'' 
came  to  him  like  a  revelation.  With  Wordsworth's 
mingled  piety  and  heroism,  humanity  and  earnest  aspira- 
tion, with  his  all-vivifying  imagination,  recognizing 
greatness  under  lowliest  disguises,  and  spreading  sweet 
sanctions  around  every  charity  of  social  life,  and  with 
his  longings  to  see  reverence,  loyalty,  courtesy,  and  con 
tentment  established  on  the  earth,  he  most  closely  sym 
pathized.  From  this  time  he  began  to  engage  more 
actively  in  political  and  philanthropic  movements."  1 

Channing  believed  that  orthodoxy  was  incalculably 
mischievous  in  its  estimate  of  Deity  and  of  human  de- 
pravity. "  God,  we  are  told,"  says  he,  "  must  not  be 
limited ;  nor  are  his  rights  to  be  restrained  by  any 
rights  in  his  creatures.  These  are  made  to  minister  to 
their  Maker's  glory,  not  to  glorify  themselves.  They 
wholly  depend  on  him,  and  have  no  power  which  they 
can  call  their  own.  His  sovereignty,  awful  and  omnip- 
otent, is  not  to  be  kept  in  check,  or  turned  from  its 
purposes,  by  any  claims  of  his  subjects.  Man's  place  is 
the  dust.  The  entire  prostration  of  his  faculties  is  the 
true  homage  he  is  to  offer  to  God.     He  is  not  to  exalt 

1  Appletou'a  American  Cyclopaedia.     Art.  Wm.  Ellery  Charming.     W. 
L.  Symonds,  Esq.,  is  the  author  of  this  biography. 


OPINIONS    OF    CHANGING.  543 

his  reason  or  his  sense  of  right  against  the  decrees  of 
the  Almighty.  He  has  but  one  lesson  to  learn,  that  he 
is  nothing,  that  God  is  All  in  All.  Such  is  the  com- 
mon language  of  theology."  ' 

Against  these  views  he  asserts  man's  free   agency 
and  moral  di^nitv.     His  creed  is  the  greatness  of  Human 
Nature ;  such  greatness  as  is  seen  in  the  "  intellectual 
energy  which  discerns  absolute,  universal  truth  in  the 
idea  of  God,  in  freedom  of  will  and  moral  power,  in  dis- 
interestedness and  self-sacrifice,  in  the  boundlessness  of 
love,  in  aspirations  after  perfection,  in  desires  and  affec- 
tions which  time  and  space  cannot  confine,  and   the 
world  cannot  fill.     The  soul,  viewed   in  these  lights, 
should  fill  us  with  awe.     It  is  an  immortal  germ,  which 
may  be  said  to  contain  now  within  itself  what  endless 
ages  are  to  unfold.     It  is  truly  an  image  of  the  infinity 
of  God,  and  no  words  can  do  justice  to  its  grandeur.'1 2 
(nstead  of  looking  without  for  a  basis  of  religion,  we 
must  commence  at  home,  within  ourselves.     "  We  must 
start  in  religion  from  our  own  souls,  for  in  them  is  the 
fountain  of  all  divine  truth.     An  outward  revelation  is 
only  possible  and  intelligible  on  the  ground  of  concep- 
tions and  principles  previously  furnished  by  the  soul. 
Here  is  our  primitive  teacher  and  light.     Let  us  not 
disparage  it.     There   are,  indeed,  philosophical  schools 
of  the  present  day,  which  tell  us  that  we  are  to  start  in 
all   our  speculations  from   the  Absolute,  the   Infinite. 
But  we  rise  to  these  conceptions  from  the  contempla 
tion  of  our  own  nature ;  and  even  if  it  were  not  so,  of 
what  avail  would  be  the  notion  of  an  Absolute,  Infinite 
existence,  an  Uncaused  Unity,  if  stripped  of  all  those 
intellectual  and  moral  attributes  which  we  learn  only 

1  Works,  Introductory  Remarks,  p.  viii. 
*  Ibid.  p.  vi. 


544  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

from  our  own  souls  ?  What  but  a  vague  shadow,  a 
sounding  name,  is  the  metaphysical  Deity,  the  substance 
without  modes,  the  being  without  properties,  the  naked 
Unity  which  performs  such  a  part  in  some  of  our  philo- 
sophical systems.  The  only  God  whom  our  thoughts 
•an  rest  on  and  our  hearts  can  cling  to,  and  our  con- 
sciences can  recognize  is  the  God  whose  image  dwells 
in  our  own  souls.  The  grand  ideas  of  Power,  Reason, 
Wisdom,  Love,  Rectitude,  Holiness,  Blessedness,  that 
is,  of  all  God's  attributes,  come  from  within,  from  the 
action  of  our  own  spiritual  nature.  Many  indeed  think 
that  they  learn  God  from  marks  of  design  and  skill  in 
the  outward  world ;  but  our  ideas  of  design  and  skill, 
of  a  determining  cause,  of  an  end  or  purpose,  are  de- 
rived from  consciousness,  from  our  own  souls.  Thus  the 
soul  is  the  spring  of  our  knowledge  of  God."  x 

The  creed  of  the  Unitarians  must  be  studied  as  one 
would  take  soundings  at  sea.  The  measurement  of  one 
place  is  no  guarantee  of  the  depth  in  another.  W^hat 
was  believed  twenty  years  ago,  may  not  be  endorsed  by 
the  leaders  of  to-day.  One  writer  of  their  fold  says : 
"  Unitarianism  is  loose,  vague,  general,  indeterminate  in 
its  elements  and  formularies."  2  When  George  Putnam 
installed  Mr.  Fosdick  over  the  Hollis  Street  Church,  he 
said  with  commendable  candor,  "There  is  no  other 
Christian  body  of  which  it  is  so  impossible  to  tell  where 
it  begins  and  where  it  ends.  We  have  no  recognized 
principles  by  which  any  man  who  chooses  to  be  a  Chris- 
tian disciple,  and  desires  to  be  numbered  with  us,  what 
ever  he  believes  or  denies,  can  be  excluded." 

But  Unitarianism  has  ever  remained  true  to  a  few 
points.     One  of  them  is  antagonism  to  orthodoxy.     It 

1  Works,  Introductory  Eemarks,  pp.  xviii-xix. 
*  Ellis,  Half  Century  of  Unitariana.s^i,  p.  34. 


OPINIONS    OF    BELLOWS.  545 

was  an  old  cry  of  the  German  skeptics,  "  Away  with 
orthodoxy.      It  fetters  us  to  forms  and  creeds,  makes 
us  blind  devotees  to  system,  converts  us  into  bigots,  and 
dwarfs  reason  into  an  invisible  pigmy."     Yet  we  fre- 
quently meet  with  language  of  similar  import  in  the 
present  day.     If  we  did  not  know  its  authorship   we 
could  easily  tell  the   ecclesiastical   fountain  whence  it 
flows.    "  The  implications  of  false  and  shallow  reasoning," 
says  an  American  Unitarian  divine,  "  partial  observation, 
intellectual  grouping,  moral   obliquity,  spiritual  igno. 
ranee, — in  short,  of  puerility  and  superstition  involved  in 
a  large  part  of  the  appeals,  the  preaching,  the  cant  terms, 
the  popular  dogmas,  the  current  conversation  of  Chris- 
tendom,— are  discouraging  evidences  how  backward  is 
the  religious  thought  of  our  day,  as  compared  with  its 
general  thought ;  how  little  harmony  there  is  between 
our  schools  and  our  churches,  our  thinkers  and  our  re- 
ligious  guides,   our  political   and  national   institutions 
and  our  popular  theology.     It  is  not  Christianity — the 
rational,  thorough,  all-embracing   Gospel  of  Christ, — 
which  throws  its  blessed  sanctities  over  and  around  our 
whole  humanity, — which  owns  and  consecrates  our  whole 
nature  and  our  whole  life — which  is  thus  taught.     It  is 
a  system  which  is  narrower  than  Judaism,  and  compared 
with  which  Romanism  is  a   princely  and   magnificent 
theology.     I  say  advisedly,  that  if  Protestantism  en- 
dorses the  vulgar  notions  of  a  God-cursed  world, — a  fall- 
en race, — a  commercial  atonement, — a  doomed  and  hell- 
devoted  humanity, — a  mysterious  conversion, — a  Church 
which  is  a  sort  of  a  life-boat  hanging  round  a  wreck 
that  may  carry  off  a  few  women  and  selfishly-affrighted 
men,  leaving  the  bolder,  braver,  larger  portion  to  go 
down  with  the  ship;  if  this  be  the  sum  and  substance 
of  religion, — if  these  notions  be  the  grounds  of  the  late 


54b  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

religious  excitement  and  the  doctrines  which  gave  it 
power,1 — then  it  is  not  so  true  to  human  nature,  its  wants 
and  woes,  its  various  and  manifold  tastes,  talents,  and 
faculties,  as  the  old  Catholic  system, — and  that,  instead 
of  trembling  at  the  growth  and  prospects  of  Romanism 
in  this  country,  we  should  more  reasonably  rejoice  in  its 
triumphs,  as  the  worthier  occupant  of  the  confidence 
and  affection  of  the  people.  But  this  narrow  system, 
with  all  its  arrogant  claims  to  be  the  only  Evangelical 
faith,  is  not  Protestantism  ;  or,  rather,  is  not  mere  Prot- 
estantism." a 

But  the  indetermiuateness  of  Unitarian  theology  does 
not  warrant  us  in  passing  over  its  tenets,  as  stated  by 
writers  held  in  good  repute  in  that  Church.  It  would 
be  unfair,  however,  to  claim  that  these  are  doctrines  to 
which  each  must  inflexibly  adhere.  The  Unitarians 
neither  exact  nor  desire  conformity  to  authority ;  in 
fact  they  have  no  authority.  Reason  is  left  to  place  its 
own  construction  upon  the  truths  of  revelation.  What, 
then,  is  the  general  Unitarian  sentiment  on  those  sub- 
jects whose  essential  importance  is  acknowledged  by  all 
Evangelical  Churches  ? 

Inspiration  and  the  Scriptures.  Channing  and 
Dewey  have  held  loftier  views  of  the  Bible  and  its  divine 
origin  than  their  less  devout  brethren.  The  latter  has 
said  that,  "  The  matter  is  divine,  the  miracles  real,  the 
promises  glorious,  the  threatenings  fearful ;  enough  that 
all  is  gloriously  and  fearfully  true  to  the  divine  will, 
true  to  human  nature,  true  to  its  wants,  anxieties,  soi 
rows,  sins,  salvation,  and  destinies ;  enough  that  the 
seal  of  a  divine  and  miraculous  communication  is  set 
upon  that  holy  Book." 3     But  reverence  for  the  Scrip- 

1  These  words  refer  to  the  great  Eevival  in  the  winter  of  1857-58. 

*  Bellows,  Restatements  of  Christian  Doctrine,  p.  164-165. 

•  Controversial  Sermons^  No.  1. 


GOD    AND    CHKIST.  547 

f.nres  is  rapidly  on  the  decline  among  the  Unitarians, — 
the  direct  result  of  the  influence  of  the  German  and 
English  Rationalists.  They  call  all  believers  in  ortho- 
dox opinions,  "  Bibliolaters."  They  spurn  the  thought 
of  an  infallible  Bible.  "  No  wonder,"  they  say,  "  that 
the  Bibliolaters  quail  before  the  iconoclasm  of  Bishop 
Colenso,  and,  in  their  rage,  call  aloud  for  his  excision 
from  the  Church;  for,  if  a  single  one  of  the  diffi- 
culties he  accumulates   can   be   proved  a   reality,   the 

whole  edifice  of  their   faith  topples  to  its  fall 

We  believe  that  safety  and  sense  can  alone  be  found  in 
our  theory,  which  regards  Scripture  as  credible  though 
human,  as  inspired  not  in  its  form,  but  in  its  substance, 
of  various  and,  in  many  cases,  of  unknown  authorship, 
and  representing  different  stages  of  culture.  We  cannot 
accept  all  its  documents  as  of  co-ordinate  authority ; 
nor  in  every  one  of  its  statements  can  we  recognize  a 
product  of  inspiration.  We  do  not  conceive  ourselves 
bound,  therefore,  to  defend  the  geology  of  Moses,  or  to 
admire  the  conduct  of  the  Israelites  in  the  extermination 
of  the  Canaanites;  or  to  infuse  a  recondite  spiritual 
meaning  into  the  amatory  descriptions  and  appeals  of 
the  Song  of  Solomon." 1 

God  and  Christ.  God  is  the  Universal  Father.  It 
must  be  forgotten  that  he  is  king;  his  paternal  charac- 
ter alone  must  be  borne  in  mind.  He  is  a  God  of  one 
person,  not  of  three,  and  the  doctrine  of  the  Trinity  is 
nowhere  hinted  at  in  the  Bible,  but  is  of  Platonic  ori- 
gin. The  Christian  Fathers  did  not  contend  that  it  was 
contained  therein.  The  view  of  three  persons  in  one 
God  is  "  self-contradictory,  opposed  to  all  right  reason 
positively  absurd." 2     Christ  is  inferior  and  subordinate 

1  Orr,  Unitarianism  in  the  Present  Time,  pp.  54,  58,  59. 
'  Farley,  Unitarianism  Defined,  p.  24. 


548  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

to  God.  He  is  God  in  the  same  sense  as  the  angels 
Moses,  Samuel,  the  Kings  and  Judges  of  Israel  They 
were  gods  in  one  respect,  —the  word  of  God  was  spo- 
ken to  them.  Christ  is  the  chief  one  "to  whom  the 
word  of  God  came."  1  In  the  New  Testament,  Christ  is 
uniformly  kept  distinct  from  the  Father,  and  the  at- 
tributes which  he  possessed,  wisdom,  knowledge,  and 
power,  were  endowments  from  God. 

The  Holy  Ghost.  The  Holy  Ghost  is  not  a  person, 
but  is  merely  sent  from  the  Father,  or  proceeds  from 
him.  The  apparent  presence  of  the  Holy  Ghost  in 
Christ's  farewell  discourse  is  only  a  personification  re- 
sulting from  the  peculiar  nature  of  the  Greek  language, 
and  the  necessity  of  its  syntax.  Not  being  a  person, 
the  Holy  Ghost  cannot  be  God,  and  is,  therefore,  not 
self-existent,  underived,  and  unoriginated.  Wherever 
it  is  described  as  a  person  it  is  only  the  writer's  striking 
form  of  speech ;  it  is  solely  personification,  just  as  we 
often  find  the  case  with  the  Law,  Wisdom,  Scripture, 
Sin,  and  Charity.2 

Human  Depravity.  The  Unitarians  have  no  place 
in  their  creed  for  man's  natural  sinfulness.  It  is,  they 
say,  a  doctrinal  innovation,  having  been  propagated  by 
Augustine  in  the  fifth  century.  That  God  should 
create  men  who  are  naturally  sinners  is  inconsistent 
with  his  parental  character.  "  The  doctrine  is  itself  re- 
pulsive. The  human  mind  revolts  at  it.  If  God  our 
Creator  has  implanted  within  us  a  natural  sense  of 
ri^ht  and  wrong,  that  sense  arraigns  his  character  and 
conduct  in  creating  us  thus  corrupt." 3  There  is  no  such 
thing,   the   Unitarians   contend,   as   the   fall    of    man, 

1  Farley,  Unitarianism  Defined,  p.  26. 
1  Ibid.  pp.  122,123,  136. 
•Ibid.  pp.  156,157. 


BELLOWS    ON   TOTAL    DEPRAVITY.  549 

Adam  was  what  we  are.  "  Had  lie  not  sinned,"  one  of 
their  writers  affirms,  "  our  race  would  have  continued 
perfect  and  happy  without  the  necessity  for  progress, 
or  the  need  of  any  of  those  educational  and  recupera- 
tive processes  to  which  Providence  has  resorted.  Let 
those  who  can  believe  this  !  Let  those  also  who  can  cail 
the  unfallen  Adam  and  Eve  satisfactory  patterns  and 
types  of  our  complete  humanity.  Imagine  a  world  of 
Adams  and  Eves,  living  in  a  garden,  on  spontaneous 
fruits,  ignorant  of  the  distinction  between  good  and 
evil,  and  without  any  capacity  of  moral  change  or  im- 
provement! Can  any  amount  of  credulity  enable  an 
enlightened  and  candid  mind  of  the  present  day  to 
think  this  world  originally  made  to  be  occupied  by 
such  a  race ;  that  unfallen  Adams  and  Eves  could  ever 
have  developed  its  resources,  or  their  own  powers,  and 
capacities  of  moral  and  spiritual  happiness  ?  Can  any 
subtlety  perceive  a  true  distinction  between  their  con- 
dition and  that  of  the  innocent  but  feeble  islanders  of 
some  few  spots  in  the  Pacific  ? *  Can  any  degree  of 
superstition  regard  a  state  of  unfallen  holiness,  which 
allowed  our  first  parents  to  succumb  in  the  midst  of 
perfect  bliss,  and  under  God's  own  direct  care  and  instruc- 
tions, before  the  first  temptation,  as  superior  to  our 
present  moral  condition  ?  If  Adam  fell,  the  race  rose 
by  his  fall ;  he  fell  up,  and  nothing  happier  for  our  final 
fortunes  ever  occurred  than  when  the  innocents  of  the 
garden  learned  their  shame,  and  fled  into  the  hardships 
and  experiences  of  a  disciplinary  and  growing  human 
ity.  .  .  .  The  radical  vice  of  the  popular  way  of 
thinking  about  moral  evil  lies  in  the  supposition  that 
.     .     .     .     a  state  of  spotless  innocency  is  better  than  a 

1  Will  the  Reverend  author  be  kind  enough  to  inform  the  public  of  the 
came  and  exact  locality  of  these  innocent  islanders  ? 


550  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

state  of  moral  exposure  and  moral  struggle;  and  that 
all  our  humanity  is  not  entitled  to  use  development  and 
play,  in  its  grand  career  of  being.  On  the  other  hand, 
the  true  theory  of  humanity  presents  us  with  a  race 
brought  into  this  world  for  its  education,  starting  with 
moral  and  intellectual  infancy,  and  liable  to  all  the  mis- 
takes, weaknesses,  and  follies,  which  an  ungrown  and  in 
experienced  nature  begets."  1  There  is  far  more  virtue 
in  the  world  than  there  is  vice.  We  grossly  mistake  when 
we  make  notoriously  vicious  characters  the  type  of  hu- 
manity at  large.  "  Man  by  nature,  as  born  and  brought 
into  this  world,  is  innocent,  pure ;  guiltless  because  sin- 
less ;  fitted  for  just  that  religion  which  Christ  revealed 
to  operate  successfully  and  gloriously  upon ;  not  indeed 
holy,  but  capable  of  becoming  so." 

The  Atonement.  The  orthodox  view  of  the  atone- 
ment is  denied  by  the  Unitarians.  Sacrifices  are  of 
human  origin,  those  of  the  Mosaic  religion  being  solely 
ritual,  and  symbolical  acts  of  faith  and  worship. 
Christ's  death  did  not  appease  the  wrath  of  God  in  any 
sense,  nor  is  anything  said  in  the  Scriptures  concerning 
Christ's  sufferings  as  causing  or  exciting  the  grace 
or  mercy  of  God.  It  is  not  stated  that  God  is  rec- 
onciled to  us,  but  we  to  him.  Christ  suffered  as  an 
example.  A  writer  already  quoted  says  :  "  Especially 
were  the  anguish  and  patience  of  his  final  sufferings  and 
his  awful  death  upon  the  cross  appointed  and  powerful 
means  of  affecting  the  mind  of  man."  2  Another  author 
affirms :  "  Christ  saves  us,  so  far  as  his  sufferings  and 
death  are  concerned,  through  their  moral  influence  and 
power  upon  man ;  the  great  appeal  which  they  make 
being  not  to  God,  but  to  the  sinner's  conscience  and 

1  Bellows,  Restatements  of  Christian  Doctrine,  pp.  228-230. 
•  Works  of  H.  Ware,  jr.,  vol.  iv.  p.  91. 


THE    ATONEMENT.  551 

heart ;  thus  aiding  in  the  great  work  of  bringing  him 
into  reconciliation  with  or  reconciling  him  to  his  Father 
in  heaven.  .  .  .  Reconciliation  is  accomplished  by 
Christ ;  by  all  that  he  was  and  is ;  all  that  he  taught, 
did,  and  is  doing ;  and  by  all  that  he  suffered  for  our 
sake.  Not  by  one  but  by  all  of  these  are  we  saved."  l 
Christ's  sacrifice  was  not  made  to  God,  for  he  did  not 
need  to  be  propitiated  or  rendered  merciful,  but  simply 
with  reference  to  man  alone, — for  his  good  ;  God's  jus- 
tice needed  no  pacification.  "  There  can  be  no  greater 
or  more  blinding  heresy  than  that  which  would  teach 
that  Christ's  sufferings,  or  any  sufferings  in  behalf  of 
virtue  and  human  sins  and  sorrows,  are  strictly  substi- 
tutional, or  literally  vicarious.  The  old  theologies,  per- 
plexed and  darkened  with  metaphysics  and  scholastic 
logic — the  fruit  of  academic  pride  and  the  love  of  eccle- 
siastical dominion — labored  to  prove  and  to  teach  that 
Christ,  in  his  short  agony  upon  the  cross,  really  suffered 
the  pains  of  sin  and  bore  the  actual  sum  of  all  the  an- 
guish from  remorse  and  guilt  due  to  myriads  of  sinners, 
thrpugh  the  ages  of  eternity.  .  .  .  Our  sense  of 
justice  and  goodness  so  far  as  God  himself  is  concerned, 
is  vastly  more  shocked  by  the  proper  penalties  of  sin 
being  placed  upon  the  innocent  than  had  they  been  left 
upon  the  guilty,  where  they  belong.  .  .  .  The  truth 
is,  literal  substitution  of  moral  penalties  is  a  thing  abso- 
lutely impossible !  Vicarious  punishment,  in  its  tech- 
nical and  theological  sense,  is  forbidden  by  the  very 
laws  of  our  nature  and  moral  constitution."  2 

Regeneration.  This  is  a  universal  want,  but  it  is 
entirely  consistent  with  the  purity  of  human  nature. 
The  natural  birth  gives  no  moral  character ;  it  is  to  be 

1  Farley,  Unitarianism  Defined,  pp.  208-210. 

8  Bellows,  Restatements  of  Christian  Doctrine,  pp.  306,307. 


552  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

formed,  and  when  formed,  is  called  the  "  new  l>irth.T 
This  is  all  that  Christ  meant  when  he  said  to  Nico- 
demus,  "  Except  a  man  be  born  again  he  cannot  see  the 
kingdom  of  God."  Regeneration  must  not,  therefore,  be 
considered  a  consequence  of  human  depravity,  but  * 
result  of  human  purity.  It  is  the  development  of  that 
which  is  already  good  within  us. 

Future  Punishment.  The  Unitarians  of  America 
have,  for  the  most  part,  adopted  the  Restitutional 
theories  of  Hartley  and  Priestley.  Mr.  Ballou  claims 
"  the  whole  body  of  Unitarians  as  Universalists."  Pun- 
ishment may  be  inflicted  after  death,  but  it  will  be  tern 
porary.  "  The  punishments  of  hell  are  disciplinarian 
and  do  not  forbid  the  hope  of  remission  and  relief."  * 

The  best  method  of  determining  the  present  spirit 
of  Unitarianism  is  to  observe  the  reception  which  it 
gives  to  the  Rationalism  that  has  grown  up  luxuriant- 
ly of  late  in  England.  The  welcome  has  been  most 
cordial.  A  Unitarian  clergyman  has  become  the  Ameri- 
can editor  of  the  "Essays  and  Reviews  ; 2  and  hails  the 
appearance  of  such  a  book  as  representing  a  new  and 
better  era  in  modern  theology.  He  holds  that  the  real 
"  life  of  Anglican  theology  is  now  represented  by  such 
men  as  Powell  and  Williams  and  Maurice  and  Jowett 
and  Stanley  ;  "  that  the  Broad  Church  is  the  only  one 
which  fully  embodies  true  progress  and  conservatism 
that  Rationalism  is  the  only  alternative  of  Romauism  ; 
and  that,  as  a  matter  of  course,  the  former  should  be 
adopted.  He  expresses  the  hope  that  the  spirit  of  Ra- 
tionalistic criticism,  "  which  is  now  leavening  the  Church 
of  England,  may  find  abundant  entrance  into  all  the 
churches  of  our  land,"  and  that  the  Essays  and  II* 

1  Orr,  Unitarianism  in  the  Present  Time,  p.  8. 
■  F.  H.  Hedge,  D.D. 


young  men's   CHRISTIAN   UNION.  553 

views,  "  its  genuine  product,  may  contribute  somewhat 
thereto."  x 

The  quarterly  organ  of  the  Unitarians,  The  Christian 
Examiner,  has  passed  an  encomium  on  the  same  ex- 
ponent of  English  Rationalism,  in  which  it  manifests  no 
tempered  gladness  at  skepticism  within  the  pale  of  the 
church.  It  says,  with  undisguised  satisfaction,  that 
"  either  these  seven  essayists  must  have  been  in  very 
close  and  intimate  confidential  relations  as  friends  or 
fellow-students,  and  have  held  many  precious  confer- 
ences together  in  which  they  were  mutually  each  other's 
confessors ;  or,  there  must  be  quite  a  large  number  of 
very  able  and  very  heretical  sinners  in  the  Church  of 
England,  within  easy  hail  of  each  other,  and  so  thick  in 
some  neighorhoods  that  it  is  the  readiest  thing  in  the 
world  to  pick  out  a  set  of  them  who,  '  without  concert 
or  comparison,'  will  contribute  all  the  parts  of  a  fresh 
and  unhackneyed  system  of  opinion." 

One  of  the  most  direct  and  outspoken  of  all  the 
organized  attacks  of  American  Rationalism  upon  evan- 
gelical Christianity  occurred  at  the  first  public  an- 
niversary of  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Union,  of  New 
York.  Its  importance  was  due  to  the  diversity  of  un- 
evangelical  bodies  there  represented,  and  to  the  celebrity 
of  several  of  the  speakers.  Unitarianism,  Sweden- 
borgianism,  and  Universalism  mingled  in  happy  fra- 
ternity. The  speakers  were  Drs.  Osgood,  Bellows, 
Sawyer,  and  Chapin ;  Rev.  Messrs.  Barrett,  Peters, 
Mayo,  Higginson,  Miel,  Blanchard,  and  Frothingham ; 
and  Richard  Warren  and  Horace  Greeley,  Esquires. 

The  Union  seems  to  have  been  designed  as  a  counter- 
poise to  the  large  and  flourishing  Young  Men's  Christian 
Association,  which  is  comprised  of  earnest  and  active 

1  Essays  and  Reviews,  Introduction  to  Boston  Edition. 


554  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

members  of  all  orthodox  denominations.  The  platform 
of  the  former  may  be  determined  from  the  following  sig 
nificant  language :  "  The  Anniversary  of  the  Young 
Men's  Christian  Union  was  the  first  instance  in  which 
so  many  of  the  leading  minds  in  the  various  branches 
of  the  liberal  and  progressive  portion  of  the  Christian 
churcli  have  met  on  one  common  platform,  for  the  pur- 
pose of  discussing  the  practical  bearings  of  that  higher 
type  of  Christianity  which  refuses  to  be  limited  by  any 
dogma,  or  fettered  by  any  creed."  *  One  of  the  speakers, 
in  explaining  the  relations  of  the  Union  to  the  church, 
said  :  "  We  maintain,  then,  that  we  are  in  the  church, 
are  the  church — not  a  part  of  it,  but  the  whole  church, 
— having  in  us  the  heart  and  soul  of  orthodoxy  itself, 
the  essence  of  all  that  gave  life  to  its  creed,  the  utmost 
significance  and  vital  force  of  what  it  taught  and  still 
teaches,  in  what  we  conceive  to  be  a  stuttering  and 
stammering  way,  in  a  cumbrous  and  outworn  language, 
with  a  circuitous  and  wearisome  phraseology ;  but 
meaning  really  what  we  mean,  and  doing  for  men  essen- 
tially what  we  are  doing.  All  that  we  claim  is  a  better 
statement  of  the  old  and  changeless  truth,  a  disembar- 
rassed account  of  the  ever  true  and  identical  story. 
.  .  We  have  not  separated  ourselves  from  the 
brethren  [orthodox]  ;  we  hold  them  in  our  enclosure ; 
we  are  always  ready  to  receive  them,  to  welcome  them. 
We  are  not  expecting  they  will  receive  us,  on  account 
of  their  providential  position.  We  have  an  intellectual 
perception  of  what  the  times  demand  and  what  the 
future  is  to  be.  We  can  see  clearer  than  they.  We 
can  see  why  they  are  wrong ;  they  cannot  see  why  we 
are  right — but  they  will  presently.  .  .  .  The  actual 
presence  of  God  in  the  world,  in  all  his  love  and  mercy, 

1  Religious  Aspects  of  the  Age.     Preface,  p.  3. 


DENUNCIATION    OF    DOGMATISM.  5o5 

supplying  our  deficiencies,  helping  our  infirmities,  con- 
secrating and  transforming  matter,  giving  sanctity  and 
beauty  to  life — this  is  what  the  renewing  of  the  old 
faith  offers  to  humanity. 

"  The  indistinct  perception  of  this  faith  and  the 
divine  craving  to  see  it  clearly,  and  bring  it  to  the  sight 
of  others,  has  led  to  the  existence  and  organization  of 
the  Liberal  churches,  and  indirectly  to  the  formation 
of  the  Youn^  Men's  Christian  Union.  Faith  in  man  as 
the  child  of  God,  his  word  and  residence,  authorizing 
the  freest  use  of  thought,  the  profoundest  respect  for 
individual  convictions,  the  firmest  confidence  in  progress 
and  in  the  triumph  of  truth ;  inspiring  good  will,  hu- 
mane affections,  philanthropic  activity,  and  personal 
holiness ;  faith  in  God  as  the  Father  of  man — man's 
universal  Saviour  and  inspirer — man's  merit  consists 
wholly  in  being  his  child  and  the  pupil  of  his  grace  in 
nature,  life,  the  church,  and  the  unseen  world — these 
are  the  permanent  articles  of  Christian  faith,  which  is 
not  so  much  faith  in  Christ,  as  Christ's  faith."  ! 

It  is  difficult  to  conceive  how  the  most  of  the  speak- 
ers at  the  anniversary  in  question  could  have  better 
served  the  interests  of  a  bold  and  unmitigated  system 
of  Rationalism.  The  great  evil  of  the  day  is  declared 
to  be  dogmatism,  against  which  every  true  friend  of 
progress  must  deal  his  most  destructive  blows.  Liberal 
minds  must  break  loose  from  the  fetters  of  authority, 
and  give  play  to  their  own  infallible  reason.  The  Prot- 
estant evangelical  church  is  placed  upon  the  same  foot- 
ing with  Romanism  ;  both  of  which  organizations  un- 
church all  who  do  not  conform  to  their  creed.  "  The 
truth  is,"  says  a  speaker,  "  this  Protestant  evangelical 
church  is  in  the  same  chronic  delusion  as  its  enemy,  the 
Roman   Catholic  church ;   it  can   propose  no  plan  of 

1  Beliows,  in  Religious  Aspects  of  the  Age,  pp.  109-111. 
37 


556  HISTOET    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Christian  union  which  will  include  the  Christians  of 
the  country.  Its  only  idea  of  union  is  the  conspiracy 
of  a  few  sects  to  take  the  kingdom  of  heaven  by  vio- 
lence ;  monopolize  its  honors  in  this  world  and  the 
world  to  come ;  and  either  compel  the  rest  of  mankind 
to  come  into  its  arrangement,  or  be  turned  into  ever- 
lasting perdition — a  proceeding  which  the  American 
people,  with  due  respect  to  the  undeniable  rights  of 
this  church,  begs  leave  respectfully  to  decline, — and  fur- 
ther to  intimate,  that  it  is  not  at  all  alarmed  about  the 
eternal  consequences  of  a  refusal  to  accede  to  the  pre- 
tensions of  an  ecclesiasticism  that  assumes  to  be  God's 
vicegerent  to  the  United  States  of  America."  * 

Great  fault  is  found  with  the  doctrines  of  the  plenary 
inspiration  of  the  Scriptures,  and  the  efficacy  of  Christ's 
blood  for  man's  salvation.  God  is  in  man  ;  and  man's 
moral  instincts,  intellectual  mould,  and  spiritual  senses 
are  infinitely  wiser  than  we  conceive  them  to  be.  They 
are  infallible  in  what  they  say  of  God,  and  are  the  best 
criteria  of  truth.  How  much  the  world  has  been  given 
up  to  the  worship  of  the  Bible  !  "  The  Bibles  will  be 
left  here  to  burn  in  the  general  conflagration  with  the 
other  temporary  representations  of  the  Word  of  God, 
which  is  the  eternal  Keason,  the  foundation  of  our 
being."  This  Eeason  is  the  "  elder  Scripture  of  God, 
— the  soul,  the  inspired  child  of  the  heavenly  and  eter- 
nal Father."  The  answer  is  given  to  the  question, 
Why  does  orthodoxy  believe  in  the  efficacy  of  Christ's 
blood  to  save  the  souls  of  men  ?  "  It  is  because  man 
distrusts  his  reason,  and  invents  the  infallible  church, 
and  then  the  infallible  Scriptures,  to  supply  his  neces- 
sity of  anchorage.  He  cannot  think  the  God  of  the 
universe  can  be  willing  to  save  such  a  miserable  sinner, 

Mayo,  in  Religious  Aspects  of  the  Age,  pp.  68,69. 


INFIDELS    PRONOUNCED    TO    BE    BENEFACTORS.        557 

and  be  invents  a  God  of  the  church,  who  will.  He  does 
not  believe  anything  men  can  do  will  entitle  them  to 
neaven,  or  that  human  lives  can  make  them  acceptable 
in  the  sight  of  God."  x 

From  the  preceding  statements  it  will  not  be  sur- 
prising to  find  some  of  the  speakers  apologizing  for  out- 
right infidelity.  "  Mr.  President,"  says  one,  "  you,  in 
the  judgment  of  very  many,  are  an  infidel.  The  mem- 
bers of  this  Christian  association  occupy  what  is  re- 
garded an  infidel  position.  And  that  very  admirable 
constitution,  which  I  have  read  to-day,  if  presented  at  a 
council  of  churches,  commonly  reputed  orthodox,  would 
be  considered,  doubtless,  the  platform  of  an  infidel  asso- 
ciation. .  .  .  Infidels,  in  all  generations  of  the 
church,  have  been  progressive  in  every  direction ;  the 
believers  in  the  present  and  the  future  ;  the  people  who 
had  confidence  in  the  unprovability  of  man,  and  the 
perennial  inspirations  of  God  ;  the  men  and  women  who 
were  persuaded  that  all  the  spheres  of  wisdom  and  ex- 
cellence were  opened  to  human  powers,  and  that  man 
was  welcomed  to  all  the  treasure  they  contain.  .  .  . 
They  are  a  thoughtful,  earnest,  hopeful  people,  bent  on 
finding  the  truth,  and  doing  their  duty." 2  Such  in- 
fidels as  these  are  claimed  to  have  blessed  the  world. 
All  liberal  minds  ought  to  catch  their  spirit  and  ad- 
minister every  possible  blessing  to  struggling  humanity. 
But  there  is  a  species  of  narrow-minded  infidelity  which 
must  be  shunned  ;  and  it  is  the  only  kind  of  which  we 
need  to  forebode  any  evil.  "  The  only  infidelity  to  be 
feared,"  says  Mr.  Frothingham,  "  the  only  real  infidelity 
which  is  a  sin  in  the  sight  of  God,  is  a  disbelief  in  the 
primary  faculties  of  the  human  soul ;  disbelief  in  the 

1  Bellows,  in  Religious  Aspects  of  the  Age,  pp.  102,103. 
*  Frothingham,  Ibid,  pp,  121—126. 


558  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

capability  of  man's  reason  to  discriminate  between  truth 
and  error  in  all  departments  of  knowledge,  sacred  or 
profane ;  disbelief  in  the  heart's  instinctive  power  to 
distinguish  good  from  evil ;  disallowance  of  the  claims 
of  conscience  to  pass  a  verdict  upon  matters  of  right 
and  wrong,  whenever  and  wherever  brought  up.  They 
are  the  infidels  who  are  untrue  to  the  light  they  have ; 
who  deny  the  plenary  inspiration  of  that  elder  Scripture 
written  by  the  finger  of  God  upon  the  human  heart ; 
who  overlay  their  reason  with  heaps  of  antiquated  tradi- 
tions ;  who  bid  their  conscience  stand  dumb  before 
appalling  iniquities  in  obedience  to  the  ill-read  letter  of 
an  ancient  record  ;  who,  in  the  interest  of  power,  wealth, 
worldliness,  not  seldom  of  unrighteousness  and  inhu- 
manity, plead  for  a  Tract  society,  a  Bible,  or  a  church  ; 
who  compass  sea  and  land  to  make  a  proselyte,  and 
when  he  is  made,  are  quite  indifferent  as  to  his  being  a 
practical  Christian ;  who  collect  vast  sums  of  money 
annually  for  the  ostensible  purpose  of  saving  men's 
souls,  practically  to  the  effect  of  keeping  their  souls  in 
subjection  and  blindness.  As  I  read  the  New  Testa- 
ment, I  find  that  Jesus  charged  infidelity  upon  none 
but  such  as  these ;  the  people  who  made  religion  a 
cloak  for  pride,  selfishness,  and  cruelty ;  the  conspicu- 
ously saintly  people,  who  could  spare  an  hour  to  pray 
at  a  street  corner,  but  had  not  a  minute  for  a  dying 
fellow-man  lying  in  his  blood  in  a  lonely  pass.  In  the 
judgment  of  these,  Jesus  was  the  prince  of  unbelievers. 
Punctilious  adherence  to  the  letter,  practical  disbelief 
in  the  spirit — this  is  infidelity."  * 

The  most  important  event  in  the  history  of  the 
American  Unitarian  Church  was  the  National  Convention 
which  met  in  New  York,  April  5th,  1865,  and  was  pre« 

1  Religious  Aspects  of  the  Age,  pp.  131-132. 


UNITARIAN    NATIONAL    CONVENTION.  559 

sided  over  by  Governer  Andrew,  of  Massachusetts. 
Six  hundred  ministers  and  laymen,  representatives  of 
one  hundred  and  ninety  churches,  were  in  attendance. 
The  debates  indicated  wide  diversity  of  sentiment,  but 
there  was  no  open  rupture.  The  sessions  were  per- 
vaded by  a  spirit  of  devoted  loyalty  to  the  civil  govern- 
ment, liberality  toward  all  Christian  bodies,  and  zeal  in 
organizing  educational  and  missionary  agencies  through- 
out the  country.  An  annual  National  Conference  of 
Unitarian  Churches  was  appointed  for  the  future.  The 
Convention  was  unable  to  arrive  at  a  common  system  of 
belief.  The  following  declaration  of  faith  was  presented 
by  A.  A.  Low,  Esq. : 

"  Whereas,  Associate  and  efficient  action  can  only  be 
expected  of  those  who  agree  in  certain  leading  doctrinal 
statements  or  positions,  Resolved,  That  without  intend- 
ing any  intolerance  of  individual  opinion,  it  is  the  right 
and  duty  of  this  convention  to  claim  of  all  who  take 
part  in  its  proceedings,  an  assent  to  the  fundamental 
doctrines  hitherto  held  by  the  Unitarian  body  by  reason 
of  which  it  has  acquired  its  standing  in  the  Christian 
world,  and  asserts  it  lineage  in  the  Christian  Church  ; 
and,  to  this  end,  this  convention  declares  as  essentially 
belonging  to  the  Unitarian  faith:  1st.  Belief  in  the 
Holy  Scriptures  as  containing  a  revelation  from  God  to 
man — and,  as  deduced  therefrom,  2d.  Belief  in  one 
God,  the  Father ;  3d.  Belief  in  one  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
our  Saviour,  the  Son  of  God,  and  his  specially  ap- 
pointed Messenger  and  Representative  to  our  race, 
gifted  with  supernatural  power,  "approved  of  God  by 
miracles  and  signs  and  wonders  which  God  did  by  him," 
and  thus,  by  divine  authority,  commanding  the  devout 
and  reverential  faith  of  all  who  claim  the  Christian 
name ;  4th.  Belief  in  the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Comforter : 


560  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

5th.  Belief  in  the  forgiveness  of  sins,  the  resurrectioD 
of  the  dead,  and  life  everlasting." 

These  resolutions  were  at  first  laid  on  the  table,  but 
afterward  referred  to  a  special  eoniniitee.  The  refusal  of 
the  Convention  to  adopt  them  indicates  very  clearly  the 
unwillingness  of  a  large  portion  of  the  Unitarian  clergy 
of  the  United  States  to  occupy  an  evangelical  position.1 

Closely  allied  to  the  Unitarians  in  spirit  and  in  doc- 
trine are  the  Universalists,  who  date  the  beginning  of 

1  American  Unitariaaism  is  numerically  decreasing.  The  most  favor- 
able estimate  of  its  membership  (Schem,  Ecclesiastical  Year-Booh,  p.  78), 
is  thirty  thousand.  From  Dr.  Sprague's  Annals  of  the  American  Uni- 
tarian Pulpit,  pp.  xx.-xxi.,  we  derive  the  following  statistical  account  of 
its  pre>ent  strength : 

There  are  in  the  United  States  about  263  Societies,  of  which  Massa- 
chusetts has  164,  and  the  city  of  Boston  21  ;  Maine  has  16,  New  Hamp- 
shire 15,  Vermont  3,  Rhode  Island  3,  Connecticut  2,  New  York  13,  New 
Jersey  1,  Pennsylvania  5,  Maryland  2,  Ohio  5,  Illinois  11,  Wisconsin  2,  and 
Missouri,  Kentucky,  Minnesota,  South  Carolina,  Louisiana,  California,  and 
the  District  of  Columbia,  each  one.  There  are  about  345  ministers.  There 
are  two  theological  schools,  one  at  Cambridge,  founded  1816  ;  the  other  at 
Meadville,  Pa.  ;  tirst  opened  in  1844,  and  incorporated  in  1846.  The  Pe- 
riodicals are,  The  Christian  Examiner,  tri-monthly,  Boston  ;  The  Monthly 
Religious  Magazine  and  Independent  Journal,  Boston  ;  The  Sunday  School 
Gazette,  semi-monthly,  Boston ;  The  Christian  Register,  weekly,  Boston ; 
and  the  Christian  Inquirer,  weekly,  New  York.  The  missionary  and 
charitable  societies  are,  the  American  Unitarian  Association,  founded  in 
1825,  and  incorporated  in  1847;  the  Unitarian  Association  of  the  State  of 
New  York;  Annual  Conference  of  Western  Unitarian  Churches;  the  Sun- 
day School  Society,  instituted  in  1827,  and  reorganized  in  1854 ;  the  So- 
ciety for  promoting  Christian  Knowledge,  Piety,  and  Charity,  incorporated 
in  1805  ;  the  Massachusetts  Evangelical  Missionary  Society,  instituted  in 
1807  ;  the  Society  for  Promoting  Theological  Education,  organized  in  1816, 
and  incorporated  in  1831 ;  the  Society  for  the  Relief  of  Aged  and  Destitute 
Clergymen,  formed  in  1848,  and  incorporated  in  1850 ;  the  Ministerial 
Conference  ;  the  Association  of  Ministers  at  1  irge  in  New  England,  formed 
m  1850 ;  the  Benevolent  Fraternity  of  Churches  of  Boston,  organized  in 
1834,  and  incorporated  in  1839 ;  the  Children's  Mission  to  the  Children 
of  the  Destitute,  Boston,  1849 ;  the  Young  Men's  Christian  Union,  Boston, 
organized  in  1851,  and  incorporated  in  1852;  the  Boston  Port  Society, 
incorporated  in  1829 ;  and  the  Seamen's  Aid  Society  of  Boston,  formed  in 
1832. 


THE    UNIVERSALIS! 8.  561 

their  strength  in  the  United  States  from  the  arrival  of 
the  Rev.  John  Murray,  in  1770.  They  unite  with  the 
Unitarians  in  rejecting  the  triune  character  of  God,  and 
hold  that  their  view  of  the  divine  unity  is  as  old  as  the 
giving  of  the  law  on  Sinai.  The  doctrine  of  the  Trinity 
is  nowhere  stated  in  the  Scriptures,  for  God  would  then 
have  given  us  a  religion  enveloped  in  mystery,  which 
procedure  he  has  studiously  avoided.  The  Trinitarian 
view  entertained  by  the  orthodox  is  not  only  a  self- 
contradiction,  but  would  be  a  violation  of  the  harmony 
and  order  everywhere  perceptible  in  nature.1 

Christ  is  next  to  God  in  excellence ;  he  is  "  God 
manifest  in  the  flesh  ;  "  that  is,  God  has  given  him  more 
of  his  glory  than  any  other  creature  has  enjoyed. 
Christ  was  simply  sent  by  God  to  do  a  certain  work, 
and  served  only  as  a  delegate  when  he  spoke  and  acted 
as  one  having  authority.3  The  Holy  Spirit  exerts  an 
influence  upon  the  heart  by  purely  natural  methods. 
The  new  birth  is  therefore  merely  the  result  of  ordinary 
means  for  human  improvement. 

The  most  important  article  of  the  Universalist  creed 
is  the  final  salvation  of  all  men.  The  goodness  of  God 
is  infinite,  and  therefore  he  will  save  all  his  rational 
creatures  through  Christ,  his  Son  and  Ambassador. 
Man  suffers  in  this  world  the  natural  consequences  of 
his  wayward  conduct ;  but  when  the  penalty  is  once 
inflicted,  there  is  no  need  of  vengeance.  The  chief  end 
of  suffering  in  the  present  life  is  man's  improvement 
and  restoration  to  perfect  happiness.  Pain  ordained 
for  its  own  sake,  and  perpetuated  to  all  eternity,  would 
be  a  proof  of  infinite  malignity.  By  virtue  of  God's 
oenevolence,  man's  suffering  has  a  beneficent  element, 

1  Williamson,  Exposition  and  Defense  of  Universalism,  pp.  11-13. 
Skinner,  Universalism  Illustrated  and  Defended,  pp.  51-56. 


562  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

and  must  therefore  be  temporary  and  result  in  good.1 
When  Christ  comes  to  raise  the  dead,  lie  will  relieve 
from  misery  all  the  sons  of  men,  give  them  a  new  life, 
and  take  them  to  himself.2 

The  adherents  of  Universal] sm  insist  upon  philan- 
thropy and  the  brotherhood  of  man.  They  hold  that 
orthodox  theology  fosters  harsh  notions  of  God's 
character,  fills  the  mind  with  superstition,  and  is  the 
source  of  some  of  the  most  flagrant  evils  of  the  present 
age.  "  We  regret,"  says  one  of  their  writers,  "  that  the 
acknowledged  faith  and  opinions  have  done  no  more  to 
elevate  the  affections,  and  improve  the  condition  of 
man.  They  have  utterly  failed  to  correct  the  heart  or 
the  life.  They  have  disturbed  his  present  peace,  and 
darkened  his  prospects  for  the  future.  Thousands  of 
the  young  and  innocent  have  been  induced  to  relinquish 
whatever  is  most  beautiful  in  life — to  give  up  all  that 
renders  religion  attractive  and  divine,  for  a  miserable 
superstition,  which,  like  the  Upas,  fills  the  very  atmos- 
phere with  death.  I  am  reminded  that  this  dark  theol- 
ogy, like  a  great  idol,  has  been  rolling  its  ponderous 
car  over  the  world  for  ages — I  follow  its  desolating 
track,  by  the  wreck  of  noble  minds — by  the  fearful 
wail  of  the  lost  spirit,  and  the  crushed  hopes  and  affec- 
tions of  those  I  love !  Oh !  when  I  look  at  this  pic- 
ture, drawn  with  the  pencil  of  reality,  in  all  its  deep 
shadows  and  startling  colors,  the  brain  is  oppressed  and 
the  heart  is  sick ;  and  while  I  would  stifle  the  inquiry, 
it  finds  an  utterance : — In  the  name  of  reason,  of  hu- 
manity and  heaven,  is  there  no  hope  for  man  ?  "  3 

1  Appleton's  American  Cyclopaedia,  Art.  Universalists. 

9  Williamson,  Exposition  and  Defense  of  Universal  ism,  pp.  140-155. 

*  Brittan,  Universalism  as  an  Idea,  pp.  12,13.  We  get  the  following 
etatistics  concerning  the  present  condition  of  the  Universalists  as  a  denom- 
ination from  their  Register  of  1862:  23  State  Conventions;  87  Local  As- 


HISTORICAL    RECORD    OF   SKEPTICISM.  563 

This  declamatory  lament  over  the  theology  of  the  evan- 
gelical Christian  church  is  a  repetition  of  an  old  skepti- 
cal charge.  It  is  the  expression  of  a  spirit  similar  to  that 
which  animated  the  German  Rationalists,  prompted  the 
criticism  of  Colenso  and  of  the  Essays  and  Reviews, 
and  is  now  ready  to  welcome  any  effort  that  may 
promise  a  revolution  of  the  popular  religious  sentiment 
in  Great  Britain  and  the  American  Republic.  Ortho- 
doxy is  unhesitatingly  pronounced  a  public  curse.  In 
reply,  we  would  request  our  skeptical  opponents  to  re- 
member the  historical  record  of  their  principles,  as  seen 
in  the  social  convulsions  of  Germany,  in  the  immorality 
and  revolutions  of  France,  and  in  the  religious  indiffer- 
ence and  prostration  of  England  in  the  eighteenth  cen- 
tury. We  would  remind  them,  further,  that  orthodox 
theology  has  here  been  in  the  ascendant,  and  that  in  no 
land  are  public  morals  purer,  the  laws  more  just,  human- 
itarian enterprises  better  supported,  material  inter- 
ests more  progressive,  or  education  better  fostered  than 
in  the  United  States.  The  American  Church  laments  that 
her  faith  has  not  been  stronger  and  her  zeal  more  fer- 
vent, but  her  history,  with  all  its  dark  pages  of  hesita- 
tion and  inefficiency,  is  the  answer  which  she  returns 
to  the  accusations  of  her  Rationalistic  opponents. 
Meanwhile,  she  proposes  to  continue  her  labor  for  hu- 
man salvation,  by  the  promulgation  of  her  present  sys- 
tem of  theology,  nor  will  she  consider  her  mission  ac- 
complished until  the  gospel  of  Christ  has  been  preached 
to  every  creature. 

sociations ;  1,279  Societies  and  998  Churches ;  724  Preachers ;  8  Acade- 
mies; 3  Colleges;  17  Periodicals.  St.  Lawrence  University,  N.  Y.  has  a 
Library  of  5,000  vols ;  and  Tuft's  College,  Mass.,  which  opened  in  1854, 
one  of  10,000  volumes.  The  Unitarians  excel  the  Universalists  in  humani- 
tarian eflforts,  but  the  latter  surpass  the  former  in  periodical  literature. 


CHAPTER    XXIV. 

THE     UNITED     STATES     CONTINUED  :     THEODORE    PARKER 
AND   HIS   SCHOOL. 

The  early  Unitarian  Church  of  America  was  ardent 
in  its  attachment  to  the  doctrine  of  miracles.  An  article 
which  appeared  in  the  Christian  Examiner  less  than 
forty  years  ago,  provoked  great  opposition  because  of 
its  severe  strictures  on  this  branch  of  Christian  evidence. 
The  writer  held  that  miracles,  even  if  proved  to  have 
occurred,  can  establish  nothing  in  favor  of  a  religion 
which  has  not  already  stood  the  test  of  experience  ;  and 
that  the  doctrines  of  Christianity  must  first  be  determined 
reasonable  before  we  are  compelled  to  believe  that 
miracles  were  wrought  in  attestation  of  them.  The 
elder  school  of  Unitarians  denounced  his  statements  as 
open  infidelity.  A  violent  controversy  ensued,  but  no 
schism  took  place.  Theodore  Parker  stood  at  the  head 
of  the  radical  movement,  and  afterward  labored  unre- 
mittingly to  disseminate  his  theological  opinions.  In 
him  American  Rationalism  finds  its  complete  personifi- 
cation. He  represents  the  application  of  German  infi- 
delity to  the  Unitarianism  of  New  England. 

This  celebrated  advocate  of  temperance  and  freedom 
was  prompted  by  a  deep  and  unselfish  love  of  his  race. 
He  was  descended  from  a  soldier  of  the  Revolutionary 
army,  and  inherited  that  indomitable  will,  strong  patri 


THEODORE    PARKER.  565 

otic  impulses,  and  native  talents,  which  had  character- 
ized his  ancestry  for  several  generations.  His  mental 
qualities  were  of  a  lofty  type.  He  was  a  linguist  who, 
in  correctness  of  speech  and  facility  of  acquisition,  had 
few  equals  on  this  side  of  the  Atlantic.  His  eloquence 
was  stirring  and  popular,  while  his  pen  was  facile  and 
fruitful.  Commencing  to  preach  in  West  Koxbury,  Mas- 
sachusetts, the  unusual  character  of  his  pulpit  ministra- 
tions attracted  public  attention.  On  being  invited  to 
Boston,  he  assumed  the  pastoral  relation  over  a  newly- 
formed  church,  the  Twenty-Eighth  Congregational  So- 
ciety. In  addition  to  his  sermons,  he  lectured  in  all 
parts  of  the  Northern  States,  and  found  time  to  write 
regularly  for  periodicals,  compose  original  works,  and 
make  translations  of  German  authors  with  whom  his 
own  theological  opinions  were  in  sympathy. 

Though  often  in  feeble  health,  he  seldom  allowed 
physical  languor  to  intermit  his  work.  When  threat- 
ened with  consumption  he  was  induced  to  spend  some 
time  at  Santa  Cruz,  whence  he  sailed  for  Italy.  He 
died  at  Florence  in  the  spring  of  1860,  not  having  com- 
pleted his  fiftieth  year,  and  after  a  pastorate  of  only 
fourteen  years  at  the  Melodeon.  He  had  often  ex- 
pressed a  desire  in  earlier  life  that,  like  Goethe  and 
Channing,  he  might  not  be  deterred  from  labor  by  the 
prospect  of  immediate  death.  Shortly  before  his  de- 
cease he  addressed  to  his  congregation  in  Boston  a 
lengthy  letter  containing  his  experience  as  a  minister. 
He  now  lies  in  the  little  cemetery  outside  the  walls  of 
Florence ;  his  tombstone,  at  his  own  request,  simply  re- 
cording his  name  and  the  dates  of  his  birth  and  death. 
He  bequeathed  his  library,  containing  over  thirteen 
thousand  volumes,  to  the  Free  Library  of  Boston. 

Our  chief  concern  is  with  Mr.  Parker  as  a  theologian. 


566  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

He  was  a  stranger  to  moderation  in  every  form.  Hav- 
ing  conceived  certain  skeptical  views,  lie  knew  no  terms 
strong  enough  to  condemn  the  whole  evangelical  scheme. 
His  chief  defects  of  style  are  abruptness  and  occasional 
vulgarity,  which  no  man  more  regretted  than  their  ail- 
thor  in  his  calmer  hours.  But  there  can  be  no  apology 
for  his  dealing  with  serious  subjects  in  that  vein  of  sar- 
casm which  reminds  us  of  the  grossness  of  the  coarser 
brood  of  infidels.  An  English  critic,  noticing  this  de- 
fect, says :  "  His  vigor  of  style  was  deformed  by  a  pow- 
er of  sarcasm,  which  often  invested  the  most  sacred 
subjects  with  caricature  and  vulgarity ;  a  boundless 
malignity  against  supposed  errors.  .  .  .  He  equals 
Paine  in  vulgarity  and  Voltaire  in  sarcasm.'1  * 

Parker  felt  that  a  bold  course  must  be  taken  or 
orthodoxy  could  not  be  made  to  yield  its  position.  His 
biographer  informs  us  that  when  he  was  less  than  seven 
years  of  age  "  he  fell  out  with  the  doctrines  of  eternal 
damnation  and  a  wrathful  God."  2  In  later  life,  when 
striving  to  find  the  sources  of  what  he  considered  the 
evils  of  the  popular  theology,  he  fixed  upon  two  com- 
mon idols  :  "  the  Bible,  which  is  only  a  record  of  men's 
words  and  works ;  and  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  a  man  who 
only  lived  divinely  some  centuries  ago.  The  popular 
religion  is  wrong  in  that  it  tells  man  he  is  an  outcast, 
that  he  is  but  a  spurious  issue  of  the  devil,  must  not  pray 
in  his  own  name,  is  only  sure  of  one  thing — and  that  is 
damnation.  Man  is  declared  to  be  immortal,  but  it  is 
such  immortality  as  proves  a  curse  instead  of  a  blessing, 
In  fact  this  whole  orthodox  theology  rests  on  a  He."  3 

His  positive  faith  is  comprehended  in  his  own  term, 

1  Forrar,  Critical  History  of  Free  Thought,  p.  324. 

1  Weis9,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Theodore  Parker,  vol.  i.,  p.  30. 

'  Discourse  on  Matters  Pertaining  to  Religion,  pp.  5,  6. 


parker's  opinion  of  deity.  567 

"  the  Absolute  Religion."  God  has  created  man  with  an 
intuitive  religious  element,  the  strongest  and  deepest  in 
numan  nature,  indestructible,  and  existing  everywhere. 
Its  legitimate  action  is  to  produce  reverence,  and  ascends 
into  trust,  hope,  and  love,  or  descends  into  doubt,  fear, 
and  hate.  Religion  is  not  confined  to  one  age,  or  peo- 
ple, or  sect.  It  is  the  same  thing  in  each  man,  "  not  a 
similar  thing — but  the  same  thing."  Three  forms  of  re- 
ligion  have  existed,  and  each  in  turn  has  ruled  the  mind, 
— Fetichism,  Polytheism,  and  Monotheism.  The  first 
can  be  distinctly  traced  in  the  mythical  stories  of  Genesis, 
the  second  in  pagan  nations,  and  the  third  in  these  later 
times.  Now,  it  is  a  very  small  matter  in  which  one  of 
these  forms  man  has  worshiped  or  may  still  worship. 
If  he  worship  at  all,  he  adores  the  true  God,  "  the  only 
God,  whether  he  caJl  on  Brahma,  Jehovah,  Pan,  or 
Lord,  or  by  no  name  at  all.  .  .  .  Many  a  swarthy 
Indian,  who  bowed  to  wood  and  stone ;  many  a  grim- 
faced  Calmuck,  who  worships  the  great  God  of 
storms ;  many  a  Grecian  peasant,  who  did  homage  to 
Phoebus- Apollo  when  the  sun  rose  or  went  down  ;  yes, 
many  a  savage,  his  hand  smeared  all  over  with  human 
sacrifice,  shall  come  from  the  east  and  the  west,  and  sit 
down  in  the  kingdom  of  God,  with  Moses  and  Zoroaster, 
with  Socrates  and  Jesus, — while  men  who  called  daily 
on  the  only  living  God,  who  paid  their  tribute  and 
bowed  at  the  name  of  Christ,  shall  be  cast  out  because 
they  did  no  more."  * 

Christianity,  with  Parker,  is  not  the  absolute  religion 
because  a  better  may  be  developed.  The  great  differ- 
ence between  it  and  other  religions  is :  first,  in  the 
point  whence  it  sets  out,  other  religions  starting  from 
something  external  and  limited,  but  Christianity  from 

1  Discourie  on  Matters  Pertaining  to  Religion,  p.  111. 


568  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

the  spirit  of  God  in  the  soul  of  man  speaking  through 
reason,  conscience,  and  the  religious  sentiment ;  second 
it  is  not  a  system  but  a  method  of  religion  and  life  t 
and,  third,  its  eminently  practical  nature.  The  Deity 
adored  by  many  people  is  a  pure  fabrication,  for  super 
stition  projects  its  own  divinity,  which  of  course  will 
be  after  its  own  impure  mould.  Men  call  the  phantom 
God,  Moloch,  or  Jehovah,  and  then  attempt  to  please 
the  capricious  being  whom  they  have  conjured  up.  The 
true  idea  of  God  is  his  infinite  presence  in  each  point  of 
space ;  this  immanence  in  matter  is  the  basis  of  his  in- 
fluence ;  this  imposition  of  a  law  is  the  measure  of 
God's  relation  to  matter ;  and  the  action  of  the  law  is 
therefore  mechanical,  not  voluntary  or  self-*conscions. 

The  Bible,  according  to  the  same  method  of  argu- 
mentation, is  as  much  a  human  book  as  the  Principia 
of  Newton.  Some  things  in  it  are  true,  but  no  reason- 
able man  can  accept  others.  It  is  full  of  contradictions ; 
"  there  are  poems  which  men  take  as  histories  ;  prophe- 
cies which  have  not  been  and  never  will  be  fulfilled ; 
stories  of  miracles  that  never  happened  ;  stories  which 
make  God  a  man  of  war,  cruel,  rapacious,  revengeful, 
hateful,  and  not  to  be  trusted.  We  find  amatory  songs, 
selfish  proverbs,  skeptical  discourses,  and  the  most  awful 
imprecations  human  fancy  ever  clothed  in  speech."  The 
minds  of  the  writers  of  the  Old  Testament  were  not  de- 
cided in  favor  of  the  exclusive  existence  of  Jehovah , 
and  all  the  early  books  betray  more  of  a  polytheistic 
belief  than  we  find  in  the  prophets.  The  legendary 
and  mythical  writings  of  the  Hebrews  prove  unmistak- 
ably that  man  was  first  created  in  the  lowest  savage 
life  ;  that  his  religion  was  the  rudest  worship  of  nature  ; 
and  that  his  morality  was  that  of  the  cannibal.  AH 
the  civilized  races  have  risen  through  various  forms  of 


parker's  views.  569 

developing  faith  before  reaching  refinement  and  true 
religion.  We  do  not  know  who  are  the  writers  of  most 
of  the  Scriptural  books.  Their  records  are  at  variance 
with  science.  The  account  of  Jehovah's  determination 
that  the  carcasses  of  Israel  should  fall  in  the  wilderness 
because  of  disobedience,  is  a  "  savage  story  of  some 
oriental  who  attributed  a  blood-thirsty  character  to  his 
God,  and  made  a  deity  in  his  own  image,  and  it  is  a 
striking  remnant  of  barbarism  that  has  passed  away, 
not  destitute  of  dramatic  interest ;  not  without  its  mel- 
ancholy moral."  x 

The  prophets  are  claimed  to  have  written  nothing 
in  general  above  the  reach  of  human  faculties.  The 
whole  of  the  Old  Testament  is  only  a  phantom  of  super- 
stition to  scare  us  in  our  sleep.2  The  statements  of 
the  evangelists  have  a  very  low  degree  of  historical 
credibility.  Miracles  are  not  impossible,  because  God 
is  omnipotent ;  but  our  main  difficulty  is,  that  we  can- 
not believe  the  accounts  descriptive  of  them.  The  tes- 
timony and  not  the  miracle  is  at  fault.  Inspiration  is 
not  at  all  peculiar  to  the  Scriptures.  All  nations  have 
had  their  inspiration;  this  is  a  natural  result  of  the 
perfection  of  God,  for  he  does  not  change ;  and  the  laws 
of  m'nd  are  like  himself,  unchangeable.  Inspiration, 
being  similar  to  vision,  must  be  everywhere  the  same 
thing  in  kind  however  much  it  differs  in  degree. 
The  quantity  of  our  inspiration  depends  upon  the  use 
we  make  of  our  faculties.  He  who  has  the  most  wis- 
dom, goodness,  religion,  and  truth  is  the  most  inspired. 
This  inspiration  reveals  itself  in  various  forms,  modified 
by  country,  character,  education,  peculiarity.  Minos 
and  Moses  were  inspired  to  make  laws ;  David,  Pindar, 

1  Discourse  on  Matters  Pertaining  to  Religion,  pp.  333|  4. 
9  Ibid.  p.  350. 


570  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Plato,  John  the  Baptist,  Gerson,  Luther,  Boehme, 
Fenelon,  and  Fox  were  all  inspired  men.  The  sacra- 
ments of  the  Church  were  never  designed  to  be  perma- 
nent. In  illustration  of  them,  Parker  sacrilegiously 
quotes, 

"Behold  the  child,  by  nature's  kindly  law, 
Pleased  with  a  rattle,  tickled  with  a  straw  ; 
Some  livelier  plaything  gives  his  youth  delight, 
A  little  louder,  but  as  empty  quite." 

The  Christian  Church  is  held  to  be  a  purely  human 
mechanism,  and  the  great  defect  of  Protestantism  is  its 
limit  of  the  power  of  private  inspiration.  God  still  in- 
spires men  as  much  as  ever,  and  is  immanent  in  spirit  as 
in  space.  This  doctrine,  which  is  Spiritualism,  "  relies 
on  no  church,  tradition,  or  Scripture,  as  the  last  grand 
and  infallible  rule  ;  it  counts  these  things  teachers,  if 
they  teach,  not  masters ;  helps,  if  they  help  us,  not  au- 
thorities. It  relies  on  the  Divine  presence  in  the  soul 
of  man ;  the  eternal  word  of  God,  which  is  truth,  as  it 
speaks  through  the  faculties  he  has  given.  It  believes 
God  is  near  the  soul  as  matter  to  the  sense  ;  thinks  the 
canon  of  revelation  not  yet  closed,  nor  God  exhausted. 
It  sees  him  in  Nature's  perfect  work ;  hears  him  in  all 
true  Scripture,  Jewish  or  Phoenician  ;  stoops  at  the  same 
fountain  with  Moses  and  Jesus,  and  is  filled  with  living 
water.  It  calls  God,  Father,  not  King  ;  Christ,  brother, 
not  Redeemer ;  Eeligion,  nature.  It  loves  and  trusts, 
but  does  not  fear.  It  sees  in  Jesus  a  man  living  man- 
like, highly  gifted,  and  living  with  blameless  and  beau 
tiful  fidelity  to  God,  stepping  thousands  of  years  before 
the  race  of  man  ;  the  profoundest  religious  genius  God 
has  raised  up ;  whose  words  and  works  help  us  to  form 
and  develop  the  native  idea  of  a  complete  religious 
man.      But   he   lived   for   himself;  died    for    himself; 


INFLUENCE    OF    SKEPTICISM.  571 

worked  out  his  own  salvation,  and  we  must  do  the  same, 
for  one  man  cannot  live  for  another  more  than  he  can 
eat  or  sleep  for  him.  It  is  not  the  personal  Christ  but 
the  spirit  of  Wisdom,  Holiness,  Love  that  creates  the 
well-being  of  man ;  a  life  at  one  with  God.  The  di- 
vine incarnation  is  in  all  mankind."  * 

Such  is  the  faith  avowed  and  enforced  by  Theodore 
Parker.  It  goes  but  little  beyond  a  belief  in  God's  ex- 
istence and  general  participation  in  human  life.  It  is 
sometimes  difficult  to  distinguish  his  views  of  Deity 
from  Pantheism ;  but  on  more  than  one  occasion  be  ex- 
pressed his  total  dissent  from  the  peculiarity  of  the  He- 
gelian system.  He  holds  that  all  we  see  about  us  and 
feel  within  us  testifies  of  God.  Neither  speculative 
nor  practical  atheism  can  produce  good  in  the  world  ; 
we  must  believe  in  God's  existence,  else  we  have  no 
power  whatever  to  explain  the  harmony  in  nature,  prov- 
idence in  individual  and  national  life,  existence  and  im 
mortality  of  the  soul,  and  the  suffering  to  which  we  fall 
heir.2  But  Theism  clears  up  every  difficulty,  and  sheds 
its  light  upon  all  departments  of  human  life.  This 
alone  can  overthrow  the  popular  orthodox  theology  and 
enthrone  the  religion  of  the  Absolute,  or  true  Spiritual- 
ism in  its  stead. 

It  is  a  question  of  grave  importance  how  far  the 
skepticism  of  Unitarianism,  Universalism,  and  Pantheism 
has  been  influential  upon  the  American  Church,  and  how 
great  is  the  number  of  those  who  have  become  more  or 
less  tinctured  with  the  Rationalism  of  the  last  five  years' 
importation.  Parker  claimed  that  the  liberal  or  Ration- 
alistic thinkers  were  largely  on  the  increase  ;  but  he  also 
informs  us  that  the  translation  by  himself  of  DeWettds 

Discourse  on  Matters  Pertaining  to  Religion,  pp.  477,  478. 
*  Sermons  of  Theism,  Atheism,  and  Popular  Theology,  pp.  51-55. 
38 


572  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

Introduction  to  the  Old  Testament,  not  only  proved  a 
financial  failure,  but  that  it  has  had  "  no  recognition  nor 
welcome  in  America ;  that  it  has  never  had  a  friendly 
word  said  for  it  in  any  American  journal."  :  Skepticism 
has  been  proclaimed  principally  by  public  lectures,  and, 
in  this  form,  has  made  little  pretension  to  logical,  exeget- 
ical,  or  metaphysical  power.  Youths  have  manifested  a 
decided  taste  for  the  works  of  Carlyle,  Emerson,  and 
Parker,  while  the  Phases  of  Faith  is  one  of  the  most 
thumb- worn  of  all  the  volumes  of  our  circulating  libra- 
ries. Yet  American  Rationalism  still  lacks  consistency 
and  system. 

The  history  of  Rationalism  proves  that  the  evil 
is  of  slow  and  insidious  growth.  The  young  are  most 
susceptible  of  its  influence.  The  Sunday  Schools  of 
the  various  evangelical  Churches  are  usually  supplied 
with  large  libraries  of  religious  books.  But  many 
works  of  pernicious  tendency  have  been  known  to  find 
a  place  upon  shelves  designed  for  better  service. 

A  recent  juvenile  publication  of  skeptical  character 
has  probably  been  read  by  many  children  whose  par- 
ents had  taught  them  that  all  Scripture  is  given  by 
inspiration  of  God.2  This  neat  and  attractive  little 
volume  is  worthy  of  the  disciples  of  Paulus  and  Semler. 
It  is  an  advocate,  under  the  most  fascinating  garb,  of 
the  very  Rationalism  which  now  threatens  the  American 
Church.  The  author  claims  that  the  patriarchal  history 
is  made  up  of  little  scraps  of  poetry ;  the  fall  of  our 
first  parents  was  their  seeing  a  dark  veil  one  day  in 
their  wandering,  and  they,  in  consequence  thereof, 
went  out  of  the  pleasant  place  where  they  had  been 
dwelling ;  the   deluge   was  simply  a   metaphorical    de- 

1  Weiss,  Life  and  Correspondence  of  Theodore  Parker,  vol.  i.,  p.  402. 
*  Stories  of  the  Patriarchs,  by  Rev.  O.  B.  Frothingham.     Boston,  1864. 


"LIBERAL    CHRISTIANITY.1'  573 

scription  of  the  increase  of  evil  among  men ;  the  ark 
was  only  a  mystical  vessel  typifying  faith,  truth,  and 
other  correctives  of  sorrow  and  sin  ;  "  there  never  was  a 
single  man  Noah,  who  put  all  those  creatures  into  a  boat 
and  saved  himself;"  no  sacrifice  appeared  to  Abraham 
when  about  to  offer  Isaac,  but  "  his  lifted  arm  seems  to 
be  seized  as  by  the  hand  of  an  angel ; "  the  crossing  of 
the  Red  Sea  by  Israel,  and  the  destruction  of  Pharoah 
and  his  host,  were  the  natural  results  of  tide  and 
storm  ;  the  bitter  waters  were  sweetened  by  a  friend- 
ly weed  that  grew  close  at  hand ;  the  speaking  of 
Balaam's  ass  was  only  the  twirling  of  his  long  ears  and 
loud  braying;  and  the  walls  of  Jericho  fell  merely  by 
the  natural  force  of  loud,  fearless,  and  honest  speaking, 
— -just  as  West  India  Slavery  tumbled  down  by  the 
agency  of  the  noble  voices  that  thundered,  trumpet-like, 
in  righteous  indignation  against  it. 

While  speaking  of  Mr.  Frothingham's  juvenile  work, 
we  do  not  forget  that  he  has  lately  sounded  the  alarm  of 
"  Liberal  Christianity  "  for  those  who  have  passed  the 
age  of  childhood.  Many  of  his  Unitarian  brethren  will 
hardly  agree  with  his  radical  Rationalism.  Belonging  to 
the  extreme  Left  Wing,  he  holds  that  it  is  the  province 
of  liberal  Christians  to  slough  off  the  absurd  doctrines 
now  prevalent, — "  not  to  remould  the  age,— to  recast  it, 
to  regenerate  it,  to  cross  it  or  struggle  with  it,  but  to 
penetrate  its  meaning,  enter  into  its  temper,  sympathize 
with  its  hopes,  blend  with  its  endeavors.  The  life  of 
the  time  appoints  the  creed  of  the  time,  and  modifies 
the  establishment  of  the  time.  The  great  mark  of  our 
generation  is  a  deep  faith  in  the  soul's  power  to  take 
care  of  itself,  and  a  desire  that  it  may  exercise  that 
power  to  the  utmost.  Away  with  fears  !  Away  with 
despairs  !     Away  with  devils  !     Away  with  perdition  J 


574  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

Away  with  doom  !  Protestantism  has  the  poison  in  its 
heart.  From  our  own  liberal  theology,  the  elements  of 
unnaturalism,  preternaturalism,  supernaturalism,  have 
disappeared  almost  as  completely  as  they  have  from  the 
systems  of  science.  The  grand  achievement  of  Chris- 
tianity was  the  emancipation  of  human  nature  from  its 
terrible  Jewish  thraldom.  Its  revelation  seems  to  have 
been,  that  men  could  judge  for  themselves  what  is 
right, — could  please  God  by  being  true  to  themselves, — 
could  find  the  blessed  life  by  returning  to  the  simplicity 
of  little  children, — and  could  bring  in  the  kingdom  of 
heaven  by  yielding  to  the  solicitations  of  kindness.  Man 
greater  than  the  Sabbath ;  man  greater  than  the  tem- 
ple ;  man  greater  than  the  priesthood  or  the  law.  The 
religion  was  a  consecration  of  Nature  ;  the  abolishment 
of  the  old  oppressive  hierarchies,  and  a  cordial  invita- 
tion to  the  heart  to  make  a  religion  for  itself.  Just  so 
far  as  it  was  in  the  deepest  and  purest  sense  '  natural ' 
religion, — just  so  far  as  it  emancipated  the  moral  forces 
of  humanity, — was  it  quick  and  quickening.  .  .  . 
Human  nature,  under  liberty,  will  vindicate  itself  as  a 
divine  creation.  The  freer  it  is,  the  more  harmonious, 
orderly,  balanced,  and  beautiful  it  is.  .  .  .  Nature's 
seers,  running  their  eye  along  the  line  of  the  moral  law, 
catch  vistas  in  the  future  brighter  than  those  that  now 
are  fading  from  the  Old  Testament  page ;  and  Nature's 
prophets,  putting  their  ear  to  the  ground,  hear  the  mur- 
mur of  nobler  revelations  than  were  ever  given  to  the 
old  oracles  now  moving  their  stiffened  lips  in  death. 
Humanity's  heresiarchs  are  lordlier  than  inhumanity's 
priests.  The  soul's  image-breaking  is  diviner  than  the 
prelate's  worship.  Knowledge  distances  faith.  Human 
solidity  more  than  makes  good  the  Catholic's  Commu- 
nion.    The  revelation  of  universal  law  makes  the  belief 


PRESENT   EFFORT    OF    RATIONALISM.  57* 

in  miracle  seem  atheistical ;  and  the  irresistible  grace  of 
the  spirit  that  lives,  and  moves,  and  discloses  its  being 
in  humanity,  sweeps  past  the  dispensations  of  Catholic 
and  Protestant  Christendom,  as  the  eagle  distances  the 
dove "  * 

We  would  not  utter  a  syllable  of  needless  alarm ; 
but  is  it  not  time  that  the  American  Church  take 
note  of  the  efforts  by  which  the  Rationalists  of  every 
trade  are  striving  to  take  awav  the  cardinal  truths  of 
the  Christian  revelation?  Their  predecessors  in  Eu- 
rope sought  to  make  children  ashamed  of  the  old  truths 
by  casting  sarcasm  on  the  strong  faith  and  evangelical 
piety  of  the  forefathers.  They  then  aimed  to  show 
that  the  Church  and  theology  are  altogether  behind 
the  age,  and  that  science  and  art  are  advancing  with 
a  rapidity  which  must  leave  all  dogmatism  and  au- 
thority far  behind.  They  afterward  examined  the 
Scriptures  by  the  light  of  Reason  alone,  and,  by  this 
idea,  deluded  multitudes  of  the  young  and  inexperi- 
enced into  the  darkness  and  doubt  which  were  never 
removed. 

This  last  effort  may  be  the  next  one  to  which  Ameri- 
can Rationalism  will  address  itself.  The  Church  in  this 
country  has  partaken  of  the  pride  awakened  by  our 
unexampled  national  prosperity ;  and  many  of  her 
noblest  sons  had  well-nigh  come  to  the  conclusion,  be- 
fore the  outbreak  of  the  late  civil  war,  that  she  must 
inevitably  prosper,  simply  because  of  the  remarkable 
temporal  blessings  which  God  had  lavishly  given. 
But  without  faith  nothing  can  be  accomplished,  and 
three  decades  may  be  sufficient  to  so  change  the  whole 

Sermon  on  the  New  Religion  of  Nature,  before  the  Alumni  of  the 
Cambridge  Divinity  School.  Published  in  the  Friend  of  Progress,  Novem- 
ber, 1864. 


576  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

aspect  of  our  religious  life  that  the  Church  may  be- 
come thoroughly  Rationalistic ;  her  sanctuaries  fre- 
quented, and  her  posts  of  honor  occupied,  by  the  wor- 
shipers of  Reason.  The  fidelity  of  the  past  will  not 
be  able  to  meet  the  emergency  of  the  present.  The 
Church  in  the  wilderness  was  not  permitted  to  lay  up 
manna  in  advance. 

Our  civilization  is  undergoing  a  complete  revolution. 
The  field  is  newly  ploughed  by  the  events  of  the  last 
few  years,  and  it  becomes  the  Church  to  scatter  the 
seeds  of  truth  with  an  unsparing  hand.  If  this  land 
is  to  be  blessed  with  pure  faith,  as  in  past  years,  a 
faith  strong  enough  to  repel  every  blow  of  Skepticism, 
to  the  Church,  as  an  instrument,  and  not  to  our  natural 
growth,  shall  be  attributed  this  popular  prosperity.  If 
we  would  secure  for  future  years  an  uncorrupted  faith, 
the  enaction  of  pure  laws,  the  introduction  of  the  Gospel 
into  every  social  class,  an  increased  enthusiasm  in  mis- 
sionary labors,  the  intense  union  of  all  parts  of  our 
country,  and  the  united  progress  of  piety  and  theologi- 
cal science,  the  duty  of  the  present  hour  must  be  dis- 
charged. 


CHAPTER   XXV. 

INDIRECT  SERVICE  OF  SKEPTICISM—PRESENT  OUTLOOK. 

The  most  important  successes  of  man  are  born  of 
his  severest  trials  and  most  persistent  struggles.  Some- 
times principles  have  required  the  combats  of  centuries 
before  they  become  the  possession  of  a  heroic  people. 
The  value  of  the  prize  may  in  most  cases  be  accurately 
estimated  by  the  length  of  time  and  the  outlay  of  effort 
expended  for  its  attainment.  "  Men  of  easy  faith,"  says  a 
wise  observer  of  human  deeds,  "  and  sanguine  hope,  have 
sometimes,  after  one  great  commotion  and  change,  joy- 
ously assured  themselves  that  this  would  suffice.  The 
grand  evil  is  removed ;  we  shall  now  happily  and  fast 
advance  with  a  clear  scene  before  us.  But  after  a 
while,  to  their  surprise  and  dismay,  another  commotion 
and  dismay  has  perhaps  carried  the  whole  affair  back, 
apparently,  to  the  same  state  as  before.  Recollect  the 
history  of  the  Reformation  in  this  land ;  begun  by 
Henry  VIH,  established,  it  was  gladly  assumed,  by  his 
son.  But  that  youth  dies,  and  then  we  have  the  instant 
return  of  Popery,  in  all  its  triumph,  fury,  and  revenge. 
After  a  while  Queen  Mary  departs,  and  all  pious  souls 
exult  in  liberation  and  Protestantism.  But  then  again, 
in  Elizabeth's  time,  there  comes  a  half-papist,  severe 
spiritual  tyranny.  Later  down,  after  the  overthrow  of 
the  tyrant  Charles,  there  arose  for  the  first  time,  a  pros- 


578  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

pect  of  real  religious  liberty.  But  his  son  resumes  the 
throne,  and  all  such  liberty  was  abolished,  and  so  con- 
tinued long ;  and  another  revolution  was  required  that 
religious  faith  and  worship  might  be  free."  1 

But  when  the  English  Reformation  did  come  it  was 
worth  all  its  cost.  The  Church  would  not  barter  it  to- 
day for  the  commercial  value  of  continents, — no,  not  if 
she  were  told  that  the  refusal  would  cost  her  whole  cen- 
turies of  poverty  and  sorrow,  many  more  martyrdoms, 
and  a  second  home  in  the  catacombs. 

The  various  conflicts  with  infidelity  have  been  scarce- 
ly less  terrible  than  the  determined  efforts  made  for  the 
preservation  of  the  faith  of  the  Gospel  against  the  per- 
secutions of  the  Roman  Emperors  and  the  popes  of  the 
inquisitorial  period.  For  there  are  two  kinds  of  suffer- 
ing in  defense  of  truth ;  that  manifested  by  endurance 
of  the  body  when  physical  pain  is  inflicted,  and  that 
which  the  mind  undergoes  when  plausible  error  makes 
its  fascinating  appeal.  And  he  who  can  resist  the  pre- 
tenses of  infidelity  and  remain  pure  amid  the  general 
waste  of  faith,  has  moral  power  enough  to  attest  his 
love  of  truth  by  dying  in  its  behalf.  God  takes  note 
of  all  offerings  which  we  bring,  whether  it  be  a  lace- 
rated body  in  an  age  of  persecution,  or  a  sorely-tried 
but  yet  purely-kept  conscience  in  a  period  of  devastating 
irreligion.  The  same  benignant  Father  who  welcomed 
the  sacrifice  of  the  unblemished  heifer  was  ready  to  re- 
ceive the  humbler  offering  of  a  pair  of  turtle  doves. 

One  of  the  general  principles  on  which  we  based  the 
present  historical  inquiry,  was  the  undesigned,  but  real 
service  rendered  the  cause  of  truth  and  the  Church  by 
skepticism.  It  is  yet  too  soon  to  prove  the  validity  of 
this  position  in  reference  to  the  present  manifestations 

1  John  Foster,  Broadmead  Lectures,  vol.  i.,  p.  309. 


GOOD    OUT   OF    EVIL.  579 

of  Rationalism  in  England  and  the  United  States.  They 
are   yet  incomplete,  and  not  until  a  system  of  doubt 
has  completed  its  cycle,  are  we  enabled  to  determine 
the  evil  which  it  has  inflicted  and  the  general  benefit 
which  it  has  indirectly  accomplished.     When  we  look, 
therefore,  at  the  developed  types  of  error  which  have 
arisen  and  made  their  impress  on  the  public  mind,  we 
are  forced  to  the  conclusion  that,  as  God  holds  truth 
in  his  hand  and  makes  it  minister  to  the  good  of  his 
cause,  so  does  he  possess  complete  control  of  error,  and 
sometimes  causes  its  wildest  vagaries  to  contribute  to  the 
advancement  of  those  interests  which  they  were  design- 
ed to  subvert.     The  promoters  of  the  evil  are  none  the 
less  responsible,  though   their  works  terminated  in  an 
unexpected  issue.  "  It  must  needs  be  that  offenses  come ; 
but  woe  to  that  man  by  whom  the  offense  cometh.'" 

This  principle  of  God's  moral  government  has  long 
been  denied  a  recognition.  The  purely  literary  historian 
has  here  been  in  advance  of  the  student  of  religious 
events,  for  he  has  conceded  and  defended  the  principle 
when  tracing  the  career  of  military  chieftains,  who  aimed 
solely  at  the  conquest  of  nations  and  the  increase  of 
temporal  power.  He  has  shown  how  the  devastations 
of  an  Alexander,  a  Hannibal,  and  a  Napoleon  have 
been  the  unexpected  instruments  of  great  popular  bless- 
ings. Ecclesiastical  historians  have  frequently  regard- 
ed all  skeptical  tendencies  as  evil  in  all  their  conse- 
quences ;  but  it  is  a  far  more  exalted  view  of  God's 
ceaseless  care  of  the  interests  of  his  Church,  to  consider 
him  as  the  All-powerful  and  All-loving,  causing  even 
*'  the  wrath  of  man  to  praise  him." 

A  glance  at  the  various  departments  of  theology 

which  have  received  most  attention  within  the  last  half 

•   century,  will  prove  that  Rationalism  has  been  the  un- 


580  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

designed  means  of  contributing  to  their  advancement. 
The  faith  of  the  public  teacher  determines  the  faith  and 
practice  of  the  masses  ;  and  those  who  are  the  commis 
sioned  expounders  of  truth  for  the  people  have  to  day 
a  more  substantial  basis  of  theological  literature,  than 
their  predecessors  possessed  before  Rationalism  appeared 
in  Germany.  As  some  of  the  grandest  cathedrals  of 
Europe,  originally  built  by  the  Roman  Catholics,  and 
designed  by  them  for  the  perpetual  dissemination  of  the 
doctrines  of  Popery,  are  now  the  shrines  of  Protestant 
worship,  so  have  those  weapons  which  were  shaped  for 
fierce  assaults  upon  inspiration  been  wielded  in  its  de- 
fense. "  Rationalism  was  not  to  be  simply  ignored," 
says  Schaff,  "  but  in  the  hand  of  that  Providence  which 
allows  nothing  to  take  place  in  vain,  must  serve  the 
purpose  of  bringing  to  a  new  form  the  old,  which,  in 
its  contracted  sphere — that  of  mere  understanding — it 
had  profanely  demolished.  By  this  means  a  freer  ac- 
tivity and  fuller  development  were  secured,  and  that 
want  which  lies  at  the  root  of  all  Rationalism,  was  sup- 
plied;  namely,  that  religious  truth  shall  not  be  con- 
fronted with  the  subjective  spirit  in  the  form  of  mere 
outward  authority,  but,  in  an  inward  way,  become  fully 
reconciled  to  it  in  the  form  of  conviction  and  certainty."  * 
The  Rationalists  at  one  time  deemed  the  criticism 
of  the  Scriptures  their  strongest  fortress.  This  is  evi- 
dent from  their  numerous  works  on  the  authenticity  of 
the  Biblical  books,  and  on  the  text  itself.  They  perused 
the  Church  Fathers  for  corroborative  opinions,  applied 
themselves  to  the  oriental  languages  with  a  zeal  worthy 
of  a  better  purpose,  traveled  through  countries  men- 
tioned in  the  Bible  in  order  to  study  local  customs  and 
popular  traditions,  and  searched  the  testimony  of  both 

1  What  is  Church  History  ?  p.  15. 


CHUECH   HISTORY.  581 

■indent  and  modern  writers  with  an  enthusiasm  seldom 
surpassed.  Their  purpose  was,  to  maintain  the  human 
character  of  the  Bible.  Now  what  do  we  behold  ? 
Those  researches  have  been  employed  by  evangelical 
critics  for  a  higher  end,  and  are  powerful  auxiliaries 
in  the  defense  of  the  divine  authority  of  the  Scrip- 
tures. The  Hebrew  learning  of  Gesenius,  for  example, 
is  the  most  available  instrument  in  the  hands  of  the 
orthodox  theologian  in  his  study  of  the  Old  Testament. 
The  most  critical  and  accurate  of  the  Rationalists  have, 
in  almost  every  case,  told  us  some  truth  which  the  pro- 
fessed friends  of  revelation  had  not  possessed,  and  which 
the  Church  might  have  been  compelled  to  seek  for 
centuries  without  success. 

Church  history  was  crude  and  ill-written  before  the 
Rationalists  expended  their  toil  and  learning  upon  it. 
They  investigated  the  fountains  ;  made  the  storm-beaten 
monuments,  old  coins,  and  medals  disclose  their  long- 
kept  secrets ;  and  threaded  the  labyrinths  of  secular 
history,  written  in  almost  every  European  language,  in 
order  that  nothing  serviceable  to  their  cause  might  be 
lost.  As  an  illustration  of  the  impetus  imparted  to  this 
sphere  of  theological  science,  we  may  state  that  between 
the  years  1839  and  1841,  there  were  published  in  Ger- 
many over  five  hundred  works  on  church  history  alone.1 
"Almost  every  theologian  of  any  name,"  says  Schaff,  "  has 
devoted  a  portion  at  least  of  his  strength  to  some  depart- 
ment of  church  history.  Besides  this,  however,  it  is 
found  to  receive  the  homage  of  all  other  departments, — 
Exegesis,  Introduction,  Ethics,  Practical  Theology,  etc., 
in  this  respect :  that  for  any  work  to  be  complete  it  is 
felt  necessary  that  it  should,  in  the  way  of  introduction, 
present  a  history  of  the  subject  with  which  it  is  em- 

'  Winer,  Handbuch  der  Theologischen  Wissenschaft,  1838-1842. 


582  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

ployed,  and  have  also  due  regard  to  views  different  from 
its  own.  Let  any  one  look  into  any  of  the  later  com- 
mentaries by  Bleek,  Harless,  Tholuck,  Steiger,  Hengsten- 
beig,  Fritzsche,  and  Riickert ;  or  into  the  dogmatic 
works  of  Twesten,  Nitzsch,  Hase,  and  the  monograph 
of  Julius  Muller  on  sin,  and  he  will  soon  learn  how 
entirely  the  whole  present  theology  is  pervaded  with 
historical  material  from  beginning  to  end."  x 

In  the  conception  of  church  history  as  a  science, 
the  Rationalists  also  displayed  a  wisdom  which  had 
ever  been  wanting.  "  Rationalism,"  says  Schaff  again, 
"  has  been  of  undeniable  service  to  church  history.  In 
the  first  place,  it  exercised  the  boldest  criticism,  placing 
many  things  in  a  new  light,  and  opening  the  way  for  a 
more  free  and  unprejudiced  judgment.  Then  again  it 
assisted  in  bringing  out  the  true  conception  of  history 
itself,  though  rather  in  a  mere  negative  way.  Almost 
all  previous  historians,  Protestant  as  well  as  Catholic, 
had  looked  upon  the  history  of  heresies  as  essentially 
motion  and  change,  while  they  had  regarded  the  church 
doctrine  as  something  once  for  all  settled  and  un- 
changeable ;  a  view  which  cannot  possibly  stand  the 
test  of  impartial  inquiry.  For  though  Christianity  it- 
self, the  saving  truth  of  God,  is  always  the  same,  and 
needs  no  change,  yet  this  can  by  no  means  be  affirmed 
of  the  apprehension  of  this  truth  by  the  human  mind 
in  the  different  ages  of  the  Church,  as  is  at  once  suffi- 
ciently evident  from  the  great  difference  between  Cath- 
olicism and  Protestantism  ;  and  within  the  latter,  from 
the  distinctions  of  Lutherahism,  Zwinglianism,  and  Cal 
vinism.  But  Rationalism  now  discovered  fluctuation, 
motion,  change,  in  the  Church,  as  well  as  in  the  sects ; 
thus  taking  the  first  step  towards  the  idea  of  organic 

1  What  is  Church  History  ?  p.  17. 


ESTIMATE    OF    CHKIST's    LIFE.  583 

development,  on  which  the  latest  German  historiog- 
raphy is  founded."  *  We  deem  this  testimony  in  favor 
of  our  position  as  of  no  ordinary  value,  coming  as  it 
loes  from  one  so  intimately  acquainted  with  the  issues 
involved,  and  yet  in  no  sympathy  with  the  skepticism 
of  any  age. 

The  nationalistic  divines  have  also  been  the  indirect 
means  of  a  better  estimate  of  the  life  of  Christ.  The 
replies  to  the  work  of  Strauss  present,  as  we  have  be- 
fore intimated,  the  most  complete  portrait  of  the  career 
of  the  Messiah  ever  drawn  by  uninspired  authority. 
The  symmetry,  scope,  power,  and  sympathy  which  re- 
vealed themselves  through  his  entire  ministry  are  so 
described  by  Neander,  and  those  in  harmony  with  him, 
that  their  representation  of  the  Messiah  must  ever  per 
form  an  invaluable  service  in  theological  literature. 
Had  the  attack  never  been  made  we  would  not  now 
enjoy  the  benefit  resulting  from  the  counter-blow. 
"  These  replies,"  says  Schwarz,  "  constitute  an  impor- 
tant literature  of  themselves,  in  which  scarcely  any  the- 
ological name  of  importance  is  absent,  and  in  which 
many  obscure  pastors  from  all  parts  of  Germany  have 
brought  the  fire-bucket  of  their  knowledge  in  order  to 
extinguish  the  flame  that  threatened  to  consume  them 
and  their  village-churches  together  with  the  historical 
basis  of  Christianity.  .  .  .  Concerning  the  theo- 
logical discussion  originated  by  Strauss,  our  attention 
is  turned  toward  those  works  which  undertake  to  an- 
swer specifically  the  critical  questions  under  considera- 
tion. His  celebrated  work  was  the  signal  for  a  totally 
new  gospel  criticism.  A  succession  of  works  appeared 
at  but  brief  intervals  that  discussed  in  a  far  more  thor- 
ough method  than  Strauss  had   done  those   important 

'  History  of  the  Apostolic  Church,  p.  80. 


584  HISTORY    OF   RATIONALISM. 

questions  concerning  the  relations  of  the  gospels  to  each 
other,  their  signification,  age,  and  authenticity."  l 

So,  too,  has  the  criticism  of  the  apostolic  age  by  the 
Tubingen  school  aroused  the  friends  of  evangelical 
Christianity  to  inquire  into  the  same  period,  and  see 
whether  their  own  ground  was  really  defensible.  It 
was  a  fortunate  day  for  them  when  their  attention  was 
directed  thither.  For  the  church  enjoys  thereby  a  much 
clearer  conception  of  all  those  great  movements  that  had 
their  origin  in  the  time  of  the  apostles,  of  the  relations 
in  which  those  men  stood  to  the  Divine  Founder,  of  the 
gradual  dissemination  of  the  gospel,  of  the  general  con- 
dition of  the  infant  church,  and  of  its  interpretation  of 
the  doctrines  promulgated  by  Christ,  than  could  have 
been  acquired  by  all  the  ordinary  methods  of  investiga- 
tion. 

Taking  the  past  as  a  present  instructor,  we  fear  no 
permanent  evil  results  from  the  recent  popular  Lives  of 
Jesus  by  Kenan  and  Strauss.  These  men  have  written 
for  the  masses,  and  their  appeal  is  to  the  plain  mind. 
They  would  portray  Christ  in  such  a  light  that  even 
the  least  intelligent  mind  might  be  brought  into  living 
sympathy  with  his  humanity.  Now,  when  their  view 
of  him  shall  have  been  faithfully  answered  by  present- 
ing his  divine  character  to  the  common  understanding, 
who  will  say  that  the  present  generation  of  Christ's 
skeptical  biographers  have  written  in  vain  ?  Those 
authors,  having  seen  the  necessity  of  a  popular  un- 
derstanding of  Christ,  describe  him  as  a  man  like 
ourselves.  They  have  written  from  a  wrong  stand- 
point, but  if  their  labors  can  suggest  to  evangelical 
theologians  the  immediate  necessity  of  a  popular  view 
of  Christ  as  our  Redeemer,  we  will  not   believe  that 

:   Geschichte  der  Neuesten  Theologie.     Second  Edition,  pp.  105,  152. 


M.    DE   PEES&ENSE.  585 

their  labors,  though  exerted  for  a  different  purpose, 
are  without  good  fruits.  The  people  need  tc  perceive 
clearly  the  character  of  Christ — not  to  look  upon  him 
as  far  off,  but  near  at  hand,  not  to  regard  him  as  the 
cold,  indifferent  observer  of  our  conduct,  but  as  that 
Friend  who,  being  our  Elder  Brother,  enters  into  sym 
pathy  writh  the  humblest  of  his  followers,  and  suffers 
not  a  sparrow  to  fall  without  his  notice. 

We  are  confirmed  in  our  opinion  of  the  ultimate 
advantages  from  Renan's  representation  of  Christ  by 
the  testimony  of  M.  de  Pressense.  This  distinguished 
theologian  was  recently  returning  froni  the  Holy  Land, 
whither  he  had  gone  "  to  seek  to  lay  hold  of  the  holy 
likeness  of  Christ  that  he  might  present  it  to  his  coun- 
trymen," when  he  stopped  at  Altenburg  to  attend  the 
session  of  the  Evangelical  Church  Diet  of  Germany. 
Speaking  of  the  indirect  service  of  Kenan,  he  used  the 
following  earnest  language :  "  I  too  wish  to  expose  to 
you  the  advantages  of  the  recent  attacks  against  our 
faith,  for,  in  my  eyes,  they  by  far  outweigh  the  incon- 
veniences and  the  perils.  Without  doubt,  this  falsifica- 
tion of  the  holy  type  which  we  adore  may  well  deceive 
the  public  mind,  for  it  fell  into  a  community  of  religious 
ignorance,  into  a  country  in  which  modern  Catholicism 
— I  mean  to  say  Italian,  or  rather  Roman  Catholicism, 
which  has  but  too  much  prevailed  over  that  of  our 
Pascals  and  our  Bossuets — had  more  and  more  reduced 
religion  to  a  servile  submission  towards  the  Papacy  and 
superstitious  worship  of  the  deified  creature,  thus  pre 
venting  the  direct  intercourse  of  the  soul  with  the  gos 
pel  and  with  him  who  fills  the  gospel.  And  then,  M. 
Renan's  book  at  bottom  flattered  all  the  bad  contem- 
poraneous instincts ;  it  made  the  apotheosis  of  that 
melancholy  and  voluptuous  skepticism  which  covers  up 


586  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

with  a  certain  distinction  and  a  certain  charm  the  most 
positive  materialism ;  it  nattered  our  languid  wills, 
substituted  the  worship  of  the  beautiful  for  the  worship 
of  the  holy,  and  authorized,  by  the  false  ideal  which  it 
presents  to  us,  a  factitious  religious  sentiment,  which 
demands  no  sacrifice,  no  manly  act,  covers  up  the  cross 
under  flowers,  and  at  last  only  gives  back  to  humanity 
its  old  idol,  newly  carved  and  painted.  This  idol  is  no 
other  than  humanity  itself.  This  mixture  of  atheism 
and  sensibility  was  particularly  dangerous,  because  it 
met  preexistent  tendencies,  and  colored  them  with  a 
fallacious  poesy.  The  art  of  the  historian,  or  rather  of 
the  romance- writer  [Kenan],  consisted  in  his  hiding  the 
entire  absence  of  all  belief  under  graceful  metaphors 
and  an  unctuous  style,  just  as  the  brilliant  snow  of  the 
Alps  covers  up  the  abyss  and  deprives  the  traveler  of 
the  salutary  horror  which  would  save  him.  You  see, 
my  friends,  I  do  not  diminish  the  perils  of  a  book 
which  has  had  in  its  two  editions  a  sale  of  two  hundred 
thousand  copies.  And  yet,  I  persist  in  believing  that 
the  advantages  are  greater  than  its  disadvantages." 

Neither  do  we  apprehend  any  ultimate  disaster 
from  the  Skeptical  Scientific  School.  Darwin,  Buckle, 
and  others  have  striven  diligently  to  impress  upon  the 
public  mind  the  opinion  that  there  is  an  antagonism  be- 
tween science  and  revelation,  and  that  it  is  of  such 
character  as  to  render  Christianity  a  useless  appendage 
to  human  society. 

Now,  in  order  to  counteract  the  influence  of  their 
sentiments,  the  evangelical  theologian  should  take  no 
partial  or  prejudicial  views  of  science,  or  of  its  necessity 
for  the  defense  of  Scriptural  truth.  The  course  adopted 
by  the  Roman  Catholic  Church  in  reference  to  the  dis- 
coveries of  some  of  the  noblest  of  her  sons  was  suicidal. 


SCIENCE   LN   HARM01ST    WITH   THE    BIBLE.  587 

When  Galileo  was  forced  to  recant  his  theory  of  the 
earth's  revolution,  the  advance  of  papacy  was  arrested. 
To  all  outward  appearance  there  is  an  incompatibility 
between  the  claims  of  geology  and  the  Mosaic  cosmog- 
ony. Shall  we  say  that  geology  is  false,  and  the  six 
days  of  the  Mosaic  narrative  must  be  understood  in 
theii  literal  sense  ?  This  presents  the  dilemma  either 
to  reject  geology  as  a  spurious  science,  or  to  discard 
revelation.  We  will  not  accept  such  an  alternative,  and 
rather  say,  "  Geology  is  a  noble  science,  but  it  is  yet  an 
infant.  When  it  reaches  its  majority  we  shall  see  a  har- 
mony,— inexpressibly  beautiful  and  proportionate, — be- 
tween its  discoveries  and  the  inspired  word  of  God." 

We  must  not  charge  the  errors  of  scientific  skeptics 
to  the  department  of  inquiry  in  which  they  labor.  The 
perversions  and  errors  of  science,  and  not  science  itself, 
are  at  enmity  with  revelation.  Mi-.  Darwin's  theory  of 
development  seems  to  be  in  outright  opposition  to  the 
Scriptural  account  of  the  animal  creation.  But  there  is 
no  occasion  of  alarm  at  what  he  has  said,  for  neither  he 
nor  all  who  think  with  him  can  invalidate  the  truths  of 
Scripture.  We  should  despise  no  theory  that  aims  at 
our  better  comprehension  of  great  truths  ;  for  the  day 
will  come  when  science,  in  its  mature  glory  and  strength, 
6hall  cast  its  human  lustre  on  all  the  pages  of  divine 
truth. 

Tne  true  way  to  meet  the  writings  of  skeptics  in  the 
Church  is  by  calm  replies  to  their  charges,  and  by  im- 
mediate ecclesiastical  discipline.  Every  word  or  act  that 
savors  of  tyranny  or  undue  exaction  creates  friends  for 
them,  and  when  for  them,  for  their  opinions  also.  Mere 
genera]  remarks  in  reply  to  their  attacks  will  accomplish 
nothing  Little  advantage  would  be  gained  if  every 
preacher  in    Great  Britain    and  America  were  only  to 

39 


588  HISTORY    OF    RATIONALISM. 

say,  "  Bishop  Colenso  is  in  error."  But  it  will  be  a 
public  benefit  if  he  be  treated  with  personal  kindness  of 
expression  as  a  brother-man,  his  arguments  examined, 
and  their  obnoxious  fallacy  proved.  The  Church  should 
deal  toward  the  foes  of  her  own  household  with  the 
greatest  possible  caution,  else  the  reaction  will  be  of 
lasting  evil.  Neander  taught  a  lesson  for  all  coming 
time  when  a  royal  edict  was  about  to  appear  forbidding 
the  entrance  of  Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus  within  the  Prus- 
sian dominion.  He  violently  opposed  it,  and  gave  it  as 
his  opinion,  that  "  the  work  of  Strauss,  though  not  pro- 
found, was  written  with  much  talent,  and  that  through- 
out, science  predominated  over  and  extinguished  senti- 
ment. That,  in  truth,  the  writer  appeared  to  be  guided 
by  singular  good  faith,  but  that  his  mythical  system 
did  nevertheless  undermine  Christianity  ;  and  that  if  it 
spread,  it  might  be  feared  that  it  might  destroy  Chris- 
tian faith ;  but,  yet,  that  it  would  be  a  great  mistake 
to  interdict  the  work ;  since,  when  once  interdicted,  it 
could  not  be  refuted,  and  by  such  a  measure  it  would 
acquire  an  undue  importance." 

But  whatever  precautions  are  taken  in  dealing  with 
skepticism,  it  is  essential  that  the  spirit  of  unity  per- 
vade all  evangelical  denominations.  During  the  Penin- 
sular War,  the  Duke  of  Wellington,  observing  that  one 
of  his  officers  of  artillery  was  serving  a  gun  with  re- 
markable precision  against  a  body  of  men  posted  in  a 
wood  to  the  left,  rode  up  to  the  subaltern,  and  said : 
u  Well  aimed,  captain  ;  but  no  more, — they  are  our  own 
99th !  "  A  similar  mistake  has  sometimes  been  com- 
mitted by  ecclesiastical  organizations,  which,  instead 
of  aiming  at  the  common  enemy,  have  expended  too 
much  valuable  time  and  energy  in  efforts  to  defend  their 
individual  creeds.     A  more  intense  harmony  of  all  the 


THE   FUTUKE.  58*J 

friends  of  orthodoxy  is  a  condition  of  permanent 
success.  The  theological  crisis  of  to-day  may  be  fol- 
lowed by  others  more  severe.  But  the  Faith  of  the 
Church  teaches  the  invaluable  lesson  that  God  designs, 
by  the  ordeal  of  the  earthly  crucible,  to  prepare  her  foi 
higher  honor  and  perfect  service.  She  does  not  desire 
a  premature  termination  of  the  season  of  proof. 

"  From  darkness  here,  and  weariness, 
We  ask  not  full  repose, 
Only  be  Thou  at  hand. — 


The  wanderer  seeks  his  native  bower, 
And  we  will  look  and  long  for  Thee, 

And  thank  Thee  for  each  trying  hour, 
Wishing,  not  struggling,  to  be  free."  * 

1  Keble,  Christian  Year. 


APPENDIX. 
LITERATURE  OF  RATIONALISM. 


I.— GERMANY— HOLLAND— SWITZERLAND. 

Acberlen,  C.  A. — Die  Gottliche  Offenbarung,  2  Bande  Basel,  1861-64. 
Auserungen  tib.  Renan,  Strauss  u.  ahnliche  Bucher.     Anon.     Tub.,  1864. 
Balmes,   J. — Briefe   an  einem  Zweifler,  Aus  d.  Span,  tibersetzt,  von  F 

Loruiser,  Regensburg,  1864. 
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Tubingen,  1859. 
Beysohlag,  W. — Uber  das  "Leben  Jesu  "  v.  Renan.     Halle  a.  S.  1864. 
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Neust.  1823. 
Bretscrneider,  K.  G. — Ueber  die  Grundprincipien  der  Evang.  Theologie. 

Altenburg,  1832. 

Zwei  Sendschreiben  an  einem  Staatsmann.     Leipzig,  1830. 

Bronsveld,   A.  W. — Oorzaken  der  verbreiding  van  bet  rationalisme  in 

ous  land,  sinds  de  laaste  jaren  der  vorigen  eeuw.     Rotterdam,  1862. 
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186-t. 
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Deutsche  Volk,"  beab.  Augsburg,  1864. 
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1860. 
Clausen,  Prof. — Katholicismus  u.  Protestantismus,  3  Bande.     Translated 

by  Fries     Latest  Edition,  1828. 

The  author,  a  moderate  Rationalist,  attempts  in  vain  to  identify  Protestantism  and  Ration- 
alism. 

Clemen.  C.  F.  W — Die  Rationalisten  sind  (loch  Christen.    Altenbg.  1829. 
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aaf  den  Evangelischen  Universitaten.     Breslan,  1830. 


APPENDIX.  b\)l 

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This  work  relates  to  the  Four  Evangelists,  and  Is  a  reply  to  Strauss. 

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S.  296  ff. 

Religion  und  Theologie.     Berlin,  1817. 

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v.  D.  F.  Strauss.     Hannover,  1864. 
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tona,  1865. 
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gung  der  Briefe  Zollichs.     Arnst.,  1822. 
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592  APPENDIX. 

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Besprechung  der  Sohriften  von  Strauss,  Renan,  etc.     Leipzig,  1864. 
Meter,  J. — Da9  Leben  Jesu  v.  Dav.  Frdr.  Strauss.     Leipzig,  1865. 
Michelis,  F. — Renan's  Roman  vom  Leben  Jesu.     Munster,  1864. 
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APPENDIX.  593 

Nicolas,  A.— Die  Gottbeit  Jesu.     Regensburg,  1864. 

Nitzsoh,  0.  L—  Ueber  das  Heil  der  Theologie  durch  Unterscheidnng  der 

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Eingebungsglauben  und  der  Urchristlichen  Denkglaubigkeit.     Wies- 
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schen  Schweiz.     Basel,  1862. 
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Gotha,  1865.  — . 

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594  APPENDIX. 

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1811.     Bd.  2.     St.  3. 
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mus, Kanon,  Tradition  und  Scription.     Zurich,  1822. 
Sohultze,  L.— Die  Wunder  Jesu  Ohristi  mit  Beziehung  a.  d.  Leben  Jeru 

v.  Renan.     Konigsberg,  1864. 
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und  Strauss.     Schaffhausen,  1864. 
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Gottingen,  1826. 
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Breslau,  1831. 
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Berlin,  1830. 
Strauss,  D.  F. — Das  Leben  Jesu.     Berlin,  1835. 

Das  Leben  Jesu  f.  das  Deutsche  Volk  bearb.     Leipzig,  1864. 

Tafel,  F.  I. —Das  Leben  Jesu,— gegen  die  Angriffe  d.  Dr.  Strauss  u.  d. 

Unglaubens  uberhaupt.     Basel,  1863. 
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neuen  Glauben.     Leipzig,  1839. 
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der  evangel.  Kirchenzeit,  auf  den  Hallischen  Rationalismus.     Halle, 

1830. 

Together  with  many  other  articles  of  similar  character  in  "  Studien  und  Kritiken." 

Vebantwobtung  (zur)  des  Christlichen  Glauben.  10  Vortrage  von  Rig- 
genbach,  Auberlen,  Gess,  und  andere.     Basel,  1862. 

Voightlander,  J.  A. — Der  Rationalismus  nach  seinen^  philosophischen 
Hauptformen  und  in  seiner  historischen  Gestalt.     Leipzig,  1830. 

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Halle,  1815.     8th  Ed.  1844. 

Weidemann,  K.  A.— Die  Neuesten  Darstellungen  d.  Lebens  Jesu  von 
Renan,  Schenkel,  Strauss.     Gotha,  1864. 

Wiesinger,  A.— Aphorismen   gegen  Renan's  Leben  Jesu.     Wien,   1864. 

Wiggers,  J.— Kirchiicher  oder  reinbiblischer  Supranaturalismus?  Leip- 
zig, 1842. 

Wislioenus,  G.  A. — Die  Bibel,  fur  denkende  Leser  betrachtet.  Leip- 
zig, 1864. 

Wollwarth,  F. — Gedanken  lib  das  characterbild  Ohristi,  von  SchenkeL 
Stuttgart,  1865. 


APPENDIX. 


595 


Zkitfra&en  Religiose,  Unparteiisch  beurtheilt  v.  e.  Laien.     Tub.,  18C4. 
Zookler,  O.— Die  Evangelien  kritik  u.  das  Lebensbild  Christi  nacb  d. 

Schrift.     Darmstadt,  1864. 
Zollioh,  C.  F.— Briefe  iiber  den  Supranaturalismus ;    eine  Gegenschrift 

zu  den  Briefon  liber  den  Rationalismus.     Sondershausen,  1821. 


RATIONALISTIC    PERIODICALS. 

4llgemeine  KiKOHLicHE  Zeitschkift. — Published  by  D.  Scbenkel,  Elber- 

feld,  1860-'65. 
Annalen. — Published  by  Schulthess,  1826-30. 
Deutscihkatholisohes  Sonntagsblatt. — Wiesb.,  1851-'65. 
Freies  (fur)  religioses  Leben.— Breslau,  1848. 

The  Journal  of  the  "  Friends  of  Light." 

Kieche  dee  Gegenwart. — Biedermann  und  Fries.     Zurich,  1845-50. 

Kirohen-und-Schulblatt. — Weimar,  1852-65. 

Predigerbibliothek.— Published  by  Bohr,   1820-'48.     Continued  by  H. 

Lang,  to  1816. 
Protestantisohe  Blatter,  Fur  das  evang.  Oesterreich. — Wien,  1863-65. 
Protest antische    Kirchenzeitung. — H.    Eltester    und    Carl   Schwartz. 

Berlin,  1854-'65. 

This  quarterly  is  the  leading  organ  of  the  German  Rationalists. 

Sonntagsblatt. — Uhlich.     Gotha,  1850.     Quarterly. 

Sophronizen. — Published  by  Paulus,  1819-30. 

Theoloqisohe  Jahrbucher.— F.  Chr.  Baur  und    E.   Zeller.      Tubingen, 

1842-'56.     Not  continued. 
Zeitsohrift  fur  wissensohaft.  Theologie. — A.  Hilgenfeld.  Halle,  1858-'65. 
Zeitstimmen    aus    d.    reformirten    Kirohe    der    Schweiz. — H.   Lang. 

Winterthur,  1859-'66. 

n.— FRANCE. 

Arnaud,  A. — Les  Orthodoxes  et  le  Parti  liberal  protestant.     Paris,  1864. 
Astie.  J.  F. — Les  deux  Theologies  nouvelles  dans  le  sein  du  Protestan- 

tisme  Francais.     Paris,  1862. 
Bieemann,  0.— Foi  et  Raison.     Paris,  1860. 
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Coquerel  fils,  et  Colani.     Paris,  1864. 
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Cassan-Flotrac,  L'Abbe. — Le  Rationalisme  devant  la  Raison.  Paris,  1858. 
Colani,  T. — Ma  Position    dans   l'Eglise  de   la   Confession   d'Augsbourg. 

Paris,  1860. 

Jesus  Christ  et  les  Croyancesmessianiquesde  son  Temps.  Paris,  1864. 

Coquerel,  A. — Christologie.     Paris,  1859. 

Coquerel,  E. — M.  Guizot  et  TOrthodoxie  protestante.     Paris,  1864. 

Libereaux  et  orthodoxes.     Paris,  1864. 

Dunaime,    L'Abbe   J.— De   la   Raison  dans  ses  Rapports   avec  la    Fei. 

Paris.  1858. 


51)6  APPENDIX. 

Fatet,  A. — Lettres  a  un  rationaliste  sur  la  philosophie   et  la  religioa 

Paris,  1864 
Franoht,  A. — Le  Rationalisme.     Bruxelles,  1858. 

Frossard,  C.  L. — L'orthodoxie  de  l'Eglise  reformee  de  France.  Paris,  1864. 
Guizot,  F. — Meditations  sur  l'Essence  de  la  Religion  Chretienne.     Paris, 

1864. 
Larroque,  P. — Renovation  religieuse.    Paris,  1859. 

Examen  Critique  des  doctrines  de  la  religion  Chretienne.  Paris,  1859. 

Lups,  L'Abbe  J. — Le  Traditionalisme  et  le  Rationalisme.     Liege,  1859. 

Nicolas,  M. — Etudes  Critiques  sur  la  Bible.     Paris,  1861. 

Pressense,  E.  De. — Le  Pays  del'Evangile;  Notes  d'un  voyage  en  Orient. 

Paris,  1865. 
Remusat,  C.  De. — Philosophie  Religieuse.     Paris,  1864. 
Renan,  E. — Etudes  d'histoire  Religieuse.     3d  Edition.     Paris,  1858. 

Vie  de  Jesus.     Paris,  1863. 

Literature  arising  out  of  the  publication  of  Renan's  "Life  of  Jesus." 

Auge,  L. — Neuf  pages  decisives  sur  la  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  E.  Renan. 

Paris,  1863. 
Baudon,  P.  L. — M.  Ernest  Renan,  le  prophete  et  le  vrai  fils  de  Dieu. 

Paris,  1863. 
Blooh,  S. — M.  Renan  et  le  Judaisme.    Paris,  1863. 
Bonald,  M.  de. — Mandement  portant  condamnation  du  livre  intitule  : 

la  Vie  de  J6sus,  par  E.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Bonnetain,  J. — Le  Christ-Dieu  devant  les  Siecles.     M.  Renan  et  son 

roman  du  jour.     Paris,  1863. 
Boubquenoud,  A. — Les  Distractions  de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Boylesve,  M.  de. — M.  Renan,  defenseur  de  la  foi  d'apres  un  procede 

nouveau.     Paris,  1863. 
Carle,  H. — Crises  des  croyances.     M.  Renan,  et  l'esprit  de  systeme. 

Paris,  1863. 
Oastaing,  A. — Jesus,  M.  E.  Renan  et  la  science.     Paris,  1863. 
Chauvelot,  B. — M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 

Ciieret,    L'Abbe. — Lettres    d'un   cure    de   campagne   a    M.    Renan. 

Paris,  1863. 
Ci.abaut,  L'Abbe. — E.  Renan  et  l'Evangile.     Paris,  1863. 
Coohin,  A. — Quelques  mots  sur  le  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  E.  Renan. 

Paris,  1663. 

Oolani,  T. — Examen  de  1a  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  Renan.     Strasbourg, 
1864. 

Constant,  B. — Les  contradictions  de  M.  Renan.     Pans,  1863. 

Correspondance  Apoortphe  entre  M.  E.  Renan  et  sa  soeur  Ursnle 
Paris,  1863. 

Delaporte,  A. — La  Critique  et  la  Tactique,  a  propos  de  M.  Renan. 
Paris,  1863. 

Des  Granges,  F. — Une  Echapp6  sur  la  Vie  de  Jesus  d'Ernest   Re- 
nan.    Paris,  1863. 

Desh aires,  G. — La  Vie  de  Jesus,  les  Evangiles,  et  M.  Renan.     Park. 
1863. 


APPENDIX. 


597 


Evangile  (le  cinquieme)  de  M.  Renan,— par  M.  H.  D.     Paris,  1863. 
Felix,  R.  P.— M.  Renan  et  sa  Vie  de  Jesus. 

Quelques  mots  sur  le  livre  de  la  Vie  de  Jesus.     Paris,  1863. 

Foisset.— Ernest  Renan  :  Vie  de  Jesus.    Paris,  1863. 

Feegiee,   J.  C— Jesus  devant  le  droit,  ou  Critique  judiciare  de  la 

Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  E.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Feeppel,  L'Abbe.— Examen  Critique  de  la  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  Re 

nan.     Paris,  1863. 
Ginouliac— Lettre  a  l'un   de  ses   vicaires  generaux   sur  la  Vie  de 

Jesus  par  M.  E.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Guettee,  L'Abbe.— Refutation  de  la  pretendue  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M. 

Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Havet,  E  — Jesus  dans  l'histoire.     Examen  de  la  Vie  de  Jesus  par 

Renan.    Paris,  1863. 
Hello,  E.— M.  Renan  et  la  Vie  de  Jesus.     Paris,  1863. 
Heeve.  — Divinite  de  Jesus.     Reponse  a  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Jouedain,   A.— Refutation  rationnelle  de  la  Vie  de  Jesus.  Paris,  1863. 
Laooedaiee,  R—  Aux  Lecteurs  de  M.  Renan.    Paris,  1863. 
Larboqtte,  P.— Opinion  des  Deistes  rationalistes  sur  la  Vie  de  Jesus, 

selon  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Lasseere,  H. — L'Evangile  selon  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Latoub.— Une  reponse  a  M.  Volusien   Pages.     Refutation  d'une  Re- 
futation, de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Laubentie.— Le  Livre  de  M.  E.  Renan,  sur  la  Vie  de  Jesus.     Paris, 

1863. 
Le  Peltiee,  E. — Vie  de  E.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Leeoy,  E. — Reponse  d'un  poete  a  M.  E.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Lett,  Le  Rabbin.— La  Synagogue  et  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Lotson,  J.  T.— Une  pretendue  Vie  de  Jesus,  ou  M.  E.  Renan.     Paris, 

1863. 
Maceakis,  A.— Le  Vrai  Jesus  Christ  oppose  au  Jesus  faux  imagine 

par  M.  E.  Renan,  et  son  Ecole  sceptique.    Paris,  1863. 
Macue,  0.— Jesus  Christ,  ou  la  Verite  vraie  dans   la  question  da 

moment.    Paris,  1863. 
Marbot,  M—  La  Vie  de  M.  Rennn  et  le  Maudit.     Paris,  1863. 
Haubert,  H. — Nicodeme,  etude  sur  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Maurette,  O. — Jesus  et  la  vraie  Philosophic.     Paris,  1863. 
Meignan. — M.  Renan  refute  par  les  Rationalistes  Allemandes.    Paris, 

1864. 
Miohon,  J.  H. — Deux  Lecons  a  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Milsand,   Ph.— Bibliographic  des  Publications  relatives  au  livre  d 

M.  Renan,  Vie  de  Jesus.    Paris,  1864. 
Mirville,  J.  E.— Le  Vrai  Secret  de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Monot,  E.— A  propos  du  livre  de  M.  Renan,  la  Vie  de  Jesus.    Paris, 

1863. 
Monsieur  Renan  en  face  du  miracle;  par  un  Croyant.     Paris,  1863. 
Olgo,  S.— Reflexions  d'un  orthodoxe  de  l'Eglise  grecque  sur  la  Vie 
de  Jesus,  de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 


598  APPENDIX. 

Obsini,  L'Abbe. — Refutation  du  livredeM.  Eenan.     Paris,  1863. 
Oeth,  N.  J. — La  Vie  de  Jesus,  selon  M.  Kenan.     Paris,  1863. 
Pages,  V. — M.  Renan  et  son  siecle.     Paris,  1863. 
Parisis. — Jesus  Christ  est  Dieu  :  demonstration.     Paris,  1863. 
Passaglia,  P.  0. — Etude  sur  la  Vie  de  Jesus  de  E.  Renan.     Paria 

1863. 
PAVY.'^-Observations  sur  le  romau  intitule  Vie  de  Jesus  par  E.  Re 

nan.    Paris,  1863. 

Conference  contre  le  livre  de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 

Pe  De   Akros,   J.— Coup  d'oeil   sur  la  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  Renan. 

Paris,  1863. 
Philips,  J.  P. — Dieu,  les  miracles,  et  la  science.     Paris,  1863. 
Pinard,  L'Abbe. — Notes  a  l'usage  des  lecteurs  du  Jesus  de  M.  Renan. 

Paris,  1863. 
Pioger,  L.  M. — Divinite  de  Jesus  prouvee  par  les  faits.     Reponse  a 

M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 

Plasties. — Un  panegyriste  de  M.  Renan.    Paris,  1863. 

Instruction  pastorale  contre  la  Vie  de  Jesus  par  Renan.     Paris, 

1863. 

Potrel,  E. — Vie  de  N.  S.  Jesus  Christ,  reponse  au  livre  de  M.  Renan. 
Paris,  1863. 

Poujoulat. — Exam  en  de  la  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Pressense,  E.  de. — L'Ecole  critique  et  Jesus  Christ,  a  propos  de  la 

Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Reville,  A. — La  Vie  de  Jesus  de  M.  Renan  devant  les  orthodoxies 

et  devant  la  critique.     Paris,  1863. 
RorssEL,  N". — Le  Jesus  de  M.  Renan.    Paris,  1863.  [1863. 

8  a  as,  A. — Epitre  a  M.  E.  Renan  contre  la  "  Vie  de  J§sus."     Paris, 
Saint-Semmeea. — Ecce  homo,  critique  impartiale  de  la  Vie  de  Jesus 

de  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Troghoff-Kerbiqtiet. — La  Defense  de  l'Evangile.      Epitre   en   vers 

a  M.  Renan.     Paris,  1863. 
Vie  (la)  et  la  Moet  de  Jesus,  selon  Renan.     Havet,  et  Remusat. 
Paris,  1864. 
Reville,  A. — De  la  Redemption.     Paris,  1859. 

Essais  de  critique  religieuse.     Paris,  1860.  [1841. 

Saintes,  Amand. — Histoire  Critique  du  Rationalisme  en  Allemagne.    Paris, 
Soherer,  E. — Melanges  des  critiques  religieuses.     Paris,  1860. 
Seoretan,  C. — La  Raison  et  le  Bonheur.     Paris,  1863. 


RATIONALISTIC    PERIODICALS. 
Disciple   (le)   de  Jesus   Christ,   (Monthly.)     Redacteur :  M.   E    HkAg. 

Paris,  1840-65. 
Le  Lien  ;  Journal  des  Eglises  reformers  de  France,  (Weekly.)      Redac- 

teurs:  A.  Coquerel,  fils;  et  Etienne  Coquerel.     Paris,  1862-65. 
Nouvelle   Revue  de   Theologie,    (Quarterly.)     Redacteur :    T.  Colani 

Strasburg,  1858-65. 
Revue  Germanique,  (Monthly.)     Paris,  1858-65. 


APPENDIX.  599 

III.-  GREAT  BRITAIN— TTXITED  STATES. 

Bannermann,  J. — Inspiration,  the  Infallible  Truth  and  Divine  Authority 

of  the  Holy  Scriptures.     Edinburgh,  1865. 
Barker.  T. — Strictures  on  Maurice's  Doctrine  of  Sacrifice.     London,  1858. 
Uatne,  P. — Testimony  of  Christ  to  Christianity.     London,  1862. 
Beard,  T.  Pi. — Voices  of  the  Church  in  reply  to  Dr.  Strauss.    London, 

1815. 

Christ  the  Interpreter  of  Scripture.    London,  1865. 

Bellows,  H.  W. — Re-statements  of  Christian  Doctrine.    New  York,  1860. 
BiRKfe.  T.  R. — Lectures  on  Modern  Rationalism  and  Inspiration.   London, 

1853. 

The  Bible  and  Modern  Thouglit.     With  Appendix.     London,  1863. 

Blake,  B. — Infidelity  Inexcusable.    London,  1855. 

B6hm,  C  J.  T. — Lights  and   Shadows  in  the  Present   Condition   of  the 

Church.    London.  1860. 
Brodebiok  and  Freemantle. — Judgments  of  the  Judicial  Committee  of 

the  Privy  Council.    London,  1865. 
Candlish,  R.  S. — Examination  of  Maurice's  "  Theological  Essays."  London, 

1854. 

Reason  and  Revelation.     London,  1359. 

Christian  Sects  in  the  Nineteenth  Century.     London,  1850. 

Christie,  T.  W. — Rationalism  the  Last  Scourge  to  the  Churcb.     London, 

1861. 
Close,  F. — The  Footsteps  of  Error  traced  through  a  Period  of  Twentj- 

Five  Years.     London,  1863. 
Cobbe,  Frances  Power. — Religious  Demands  of  the  Age.     Boston,  1863. 

Reprint  of  the  Preface  to  London  Ed.  of  Theo.  Parker's  Works,  which  are  edited  by  this 
Authoress. 

An  Essay  on  Intuitive  Morals.     London,  1864. 

Broken  Lights.     London,  1864. 

A  survey  of  the  present  condition  of  Church  Parties  in  England. 

Religious  Duty.     London,  1864. 

Colfnso,  Bp. — Village  Sermons.     London,  1853. 

St.  Paul's  Epistle  to  Romans.     Newly  Translated.     London,  1861. 

—  —  Pentateuch  and  Book   of  Joshua   critically   examined.     London, 
1862-64. 

Works  called  forth  by  the  above  Commentary. 

Alpha. — Bishop  Colenso  and  the  Pentateuch.      Vindication    of  the 

Historical  Character  of  the  Old  Testament.     London,  1863. 
Anti-Colenso. — By  Johannes  Laicus.     London,  1863. 
Ashpitel,  F. — Increase   of  the    Israelites    in    Egypt    shown    to    be 
probable  from  the  Statistics  of  Modern  Population  ;  with  an  Ex- 
amination   of   Bishop   Colenso's    Calculations   on   the    Subject. 
London,  1863. 
Barrister  (A). — History  against  Colenso.    Dublin,  1863. 
Bartholomew,  J. — All  Scripture  given  by  Inspiration  of  God.     Lon- 
don, 1863. 


600  APPENDIX. 

Bekk,  C.  T. — A  Few  Words  with  Bishop  Colenso      London,  1862. 
Benisoh,  A. — Bishop  Oolenso's  Objections  to  the  Pentateuch  and  Book 

of  Joshua  critically  examined.     London,  1863. 
Biber,  G.  E.— The  Integrity  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  and  their  Divine 

Inspiration  and  Authority  vindicated.     London,  1863. 
Bible  in  the  Workshop. — By  two  Working  Men.     London.  1863. 
Bible  (the)  in  the  Gospels. — By  Alpha.     London,  1863 
Biden,   J. — Religious  Reformation  imperatively  demanded.      Bish;.; 

Colenso's  Enquiries  answered.     London,  1864. 

Bibks,  T.  R. — The  Exodus  of  Israel;  a  Reply  to  Recent  Objections. 
London,  1803. 

Briggs,  F.  W. — The  Two  Testimonies.  Last  objections  to  Rational* 
ism.  Being  a  Reply  to  Bishop  Colenso's  Pentateuch  and  Book  of 
Joshua.     London,  1863. 

Browne,  G.  H. — The  Pentateuch  and  the  Elohistic  Psalms,  in  reply 
to  Bishop  Colenso.     London,  1863. 

Bullock,  C. — Bible  Inspiration.     London,  1863. 
Candlish,  R.  S. — Lectures  on  the  Book  of  Genesis.     3  vols.     Lon- 
don, 1862. 

Caeey,  C.  S.— The  Bible  or  the  Bishop?     London,  1863. 
Carylon,   C. — A  few    more   words  addressed   to   the   Bishops,  &c. 
London,  1863. 

Chamberlln,  W. — A  Plain  Reply  to  Bishop  Colenso.     London,  1863. 
Colenso,  Bishop. — Letter  to  the  Laity  of  the  Diocese  of  Natal.     Lon- 
don, 1864. 

Written  on  the  subject  of  the  Bishop's  prosecution. 

Trial  of  the  Bishop  of  Natal  for  erroneous  Teaching.      Cape 

Town,  1864. 

Foreign  Missions  and  Mosaic  Traditions.     A  Lecture.     Lon- 


don, 1865. 

Gumming,  J. — Moses  Right  and  Bishop  Colenso  Wrong.  Popular 
Lectures  in  Weekly  Numbers.     London,  1863. 

Davidson,  P. — The  Pentateuch  vindicated  from  the  Objections  and 
Misrepresentations  of  Bishop  Colenso.     London,  1863. 

Drew,  G.  S. — Bishop  Oolenso's  Examination  of  the  Pentateuch  Ex- 
amined.    London,  1863. 

Family  of  Judah  :  a  Refutation  of  Colenso's  First  Objection  to  the 
Pentateuch.     By  a  Layman.     London,  1863. 

Fowle,  W.  H. — A  Few  Remarks  on  Bishop  Colenso  on  the  Penta- 
teuch.    London,  1863. 

Fowler,  F.  W. — Vindex  Pentateuchi.  An  Answer  to  Bishop  Co- 
lenso on  the  Pentateuch.     London,  1863. 

Gaeland,  G.  V. — Plain  possible  Solutions  of  the  Objections  ic 
Bishop  Colenso  on  the  Pentateuch.     London,  1863. 

Gaussen,  L. — The  Canon  of  Holy  Scripture.     London,  1863. 

Gibson,  J. — Present  Truths  in  Theology.     2  vols.     Glasgow,  1863. 

Gbeen,  W.  H. — The  Pentateuch  vindicated  from  the  Aspersions  of 
Bishop  Colenso.     New  York,  1863. 

Gbesswell,  E. — Objections  of  Bishop  Colenso.  Part  I.  considered 
London,  1863. 


APPENDIX.  00 1 

Griffin,  J.  N. — Dr.  Uolenso  and  the  Pentateuch.     Dublin,  1863. 

Hake,  W.  H. — Letter  to  Bishop  Oolenso.     London,  1863. 

Haycroft,  N. — Moses  and  Oolenso;  or,  the  Divine  Authority  of  the 
Bojks  of  Moses  and  the  Objections  of  Dr.  Oolenso.  London,  1868. 

Higginson,  E.— The  Spirit  of  the  Bible.     2  vols.     London,  1863. 

Hill,  M. — Christ,  or  Oolenso :  a  full  Reply  to  Bishop  Oolenso's  Ob- 
jections.    London,  1863. 

Hibschfeldee,  J.  M. — The  Scriptures  Defended.  Reply  to  Oolenso. 
Toronto,  1864. 

Historic  (The)  Character  of  the  Pentateuch  Vindicated;  Reply  to 
Part  I.  of  Bishop  Oolenso's  "  Critical  Examination."   Lond.,  1863. 

Hoare,  W.  H. — Letter  to  Bishop  Colenso.    London,  1863. 

Houghton,  W. — Some  of  Bp.  Oolenso's  objections  examined.  Lon- 
don, 1863. 

Ingram,  G.  S. — Bishop  Oolenso  answered.     London,  1863. 

Jewish  (A)  Reply  to  Dr.  Oolenso's  Criticism  on  the  Pentateuch. 
London,  1865. 

Jones,  E.  R. — Christ's  Testimony  to  Moses.     London,  1863. 

Jones,  Sir  W. — Christianity  and  Common  Sense.     London,  1863. 

Jukes,  A. — The  Types  of  Genesis  considered.     London,  1863. 

Kirkus,  W. — Orthodoxy,  Scripture,  and  Reason.     London,  1864. 

Layman  (A)  of  the  Ch.  of  England.  Historical  Character  of  the 
Pentateuch.  Reply  to  Oolenso's  "  Critical  Examination."  Lon- 
don, 1863. 

Layman  (A). — New  Testament  and  the  Pentateuch.    London,  1863. 

McCaul,  A. — An  Examination  of  Bishop  Oolenso's  Difficulties  with 

regard  to  the  Pentateuch.     London,  1864. 
McCaul,  J.  B. — Bishop  Oolenso's  Criticism  criticised.   London,  1868. 
McNeile,  H. — Historical  Veracity  of  the  Pentateuch.   London,  1863. 
Mahan,  M. — Spiritual  Point  of  View ;  an  Answer  to  Bishop  Colenso. 

New  York,  1863. 
Mann,  J.   H. — Moses  defended  against  the  Attacks  of  Dr.  Colenso. 

London,  1863. 
Marsh,  J.  B. — Is  the  Pentateuch  Historically  True  ?    Lond.,    1863. 

Marshall,  Judge. — Full  Review  and  Exposure  of  Bishop  Oolenso's 
Errors  and  Miscalculations  in  his  work.     London,  1864. 

Maurice,  F.  D. — Claims  of  the  Bible  and  of  Science.     Lond.,  1864. 

Moon,  R. — The  Pentateuch  and  Book  of  Joshua  considered  with 
Reference  to  the  Objections  of  the  Bishop  of  Natal.    Lond.,  1863. 

Moore.  D. — Divine  Authority  of  the  Pentateuch  Vindicated.  Lon- 
don, 1864. 

Moreau,  E.  B. — Examination  of  some  of  Bishop  Oolenso's  Objec- 
tions.    London,  1863. 

Mosaic  Origin  of  the  Pentateuch,  in  connection  with  Parts  2  &v\ 
3  of  Bishop  Oolenso's  Critical  Examination.    London,  1864. 

Mozley,  J.  B. — Subscription  to  the  Articles.     London,  1863. 

Ollivant,  A. — A  Second  Letter  to  the  Clergy   of  Llandaff.      Lon 
don.  1863. 


602  APPENDIX. 

Page,  J.  R.— The  Pretensions  of  Bishop  Cvienso  considered.     Lot 
don,  186? 

Palmee,  G.— Scripture  Facts  and  Scientific  Doubts.    London,  1863. 

Pentateuch  (the)  and  its  Opponents.     London,  1863. 

Phillpot,  H. — The  Textual  Witness  to  the  Truth  and   Divine   An 
thority  of  the  Pentateuch.     London,  1863. 

Possibilities  of  Creation.     London,  1862. 

Post,  J.— The  Bible  for  All.     London,  1862. 

Presbyter  Anglioanus. — Critical  Analysis  of  the  Pentateuch.     Lon 
don,  1863. 

PRironARD,  C. — Vindicise  Mosaicse.     London,  1863. 

Rask,  R. — A  Short  Tractate  on  the  Longevity  ascribed  to  the  Patri- 
archs.    London,  1863. 

Rationalism  Unphilosophioal,  and  Faith  the  Gift  of  God.     Lon- 
don, 1863. 

Remarks  on  Bishop  Colenso's  Work;    or,  Rationalism  Shown  to 
be  Irrational.     London,  1863. 

Rogers,  B.  B. — Free  Inquiry  into  Colenso's  Difficulties.  Lond.,  1863. 

Rogers,  H.— A  Vindication  of  Bisliop  Colenso.     Edinburgh,  1863. 

Savile,  B.  W.— Man  ;  or,  the  Old  and  New  Philosophy.    Lond.,  1863. 

The  author  controverts  the  views  of  Darwin,  Owen,  Huxley,  Bunsen,  Colenso,  and  others. 

Scott,   W.   A.— Moses  and  the  Pentateuch:     a    Reply    to    Bishop 

Oolenso.     London,  1863. 
Silver,  A. — The  Holy  Word  in  its  own  Defense :  addressed  to  Bishop 

Colenso.     New  York,  1863. 
Sinclair,  J. — On  Free  Thought.     London,  1865. 
Spry,  W.  J. — Bishop  Colenso  and  the  Descent  of  Jacob  into  Egypt. 

Pt.  I.     London,  1863. 
Stanley,   A.   P. — A  letter  to  the  Lord   Bishop   of  London  on  the 

State  of  Subscription  in  the  Church  of  England  and  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Oxford.     London,  1863. 
Swete,  H.  B. — What  is  the  Right  Method  of  conducting  the  Defense 

of  the  Old  Testament  in  the  Rationalistic  Controversy  which  has 

come  upon  the  Church  ?     London,  1863. 
Taylor,  I. — Considerations  on  the  Pentateuch.     London,  1863. 
Thornton,  T. — Life  of  Moses.     London,  1863. 
Turner,  J.  B. — An   Answer  to   the  Difficulties  in  Bishop  Colenso's 

Book  on  the  Pentateuch.     London,  1863. 
Tyler,   T. — Christ   the  Lord ;    with   a  Reply    to    Bishop    Colenso 

London,  1863. 
What  is  Truth  ?     A  Letter  to  Bishop  Colenso.     London,  1864. 
Wiokes,  W. — Moses  or  the  Zulu?     London,  1863. 
Wordsworth,  C. — Inspiration  of  the  Bible.     London,  1863. 
Davidson,  Dr.  S — Treatise  on  Biblical  Criticism.     London,  1855. 
uewar,  E.  H.— Brief  History  of  German  Theology.     London,  1844. 
Donaldson,  T.  W. — Essay  on  Christian  Orthodoxy.     London,  1857. 
Draper,  J.  W. — Intellectual  Development  of  Europe.     New  York,  1868 
Elliott,  W. — Old  Theology  the  True  Theology.     London,  1861. 


APPENDIX.  £03 

Essays  and  Reviews.     London,  1861. 

Works  arising  from  the  above  Oxford  Essays 
Aids  to  faith,  Replies  to  Essays  and  Reviews.     London,  1863. 
Baylat,  0.  F.  R. — "Essays  and  Reviews"  compared  with  Reason. 

London,  1861. 
Buchanan,  J.—"  Essays  and  Reviews"  Examined.    London,  1861. 
Close,  F. — Critical  Examination  of  "  Essays  and  Reviews."    LondoD, 

1861. 
Denison,  G.  A. — Analysis  of  "Essays  and  Reviews."   London,  1861. 
Dialogues  on  Essays  and  Reviews.     London,  1862. 
Gikdlestone,  E. — Remarks  on  Essays  and  Reviews.     Lond.,  1861. 
Jelf,  R.  W. — Evidence  of    Unsoundness  in  Essays  and    Reviews. 

London,  1861. 
Kennard,  R.  B. — Essays    and    Reviews.    Protest  addressed  to  the 
Bishop  of  Salisbury.     London,  1861. 

The  Essays  and  Reviews :    their  Origin,   History,    General 

Character  and  Significance,  Persecution,  Prosecution,  the  Judg- 
ment of  the  Arches  Court,  Review  of  Judgment.  London,  1863. 
Lushington,  S. — Judgment  delivered  on  Essays  and  Reviews.     Lon- 
don, 1862. 
Milton,  J.— Prophecy  of  Essays   and  Reviews  and  his  Judgment. 

London,  1861. 
Moberly,  G. — Remarks  on  Essays  and  Reviews.     London,  1861. 
Replies  to  Essays  and  Reviews,  by  Goulburn,   Rose,  and  others. 

London,  1862. 
Worn-Out  Neology. — Strictures  upon  Essays  and  Reviews.     Lon- 
don, 1861. 
Farrar,  A.  S. — A  Critical  History  of  Free  Thought  in  Reference  to  the 

Christian  Religion.     London,  1863. 
Fisher,  G.  P. — Essays  on  the  supernatural  Origin  of  Christianity.     With 
special  reference  to  the  Works  of  Renan,  Strauss,  and  the  Tubingen 
School.     New  York,  1865. 
Franexand,  B. — Intuitionalism ;  or,  Insufficiency  of  Pure  Reason.     Lon- 
don, 1861. 
Frothingham,  O.  B. — Tales  from  the  Patriarchs.     Boston,  1864. 
Furness,  W.  H. — Jesus  and  his  Biographers.     Boston,  1838. 
Gage,  J.  A. — The  Life  of  Jesus  a  Fact,  not  a  Fiction.     A  Response  to  M. 

Renan's  Vie  de  Jesus.     London,  1863. 
Garbett,  E. — Bible  and  its  Critics.   Boyle  Lectures  for  1861.    Lond.  1861. 
Goulburn,  E.  M. — Inspiration  of  the  Holy  Scriptures.     London,  1857. 
Greg,    W.    R. — The  Creed  of  Christendom.     London,  1863. 
Hamilton,  W.  T. — Defense  of  the  Pentateuch  against  Scepticism.    London, 

1852. 
Hebebt,  C — Neology  not  True  and  Truth  not  New.     2d  Ed.     London, 

1861. 
Hedge,  F.  H. — Reason  in  Religion.     Boston,  1865. 
Heurtly,  C.  A. — Inspiration  of  Holy  Scriptures.     London,  1861. 
Hooker.   W. — Philosophy  of  Unbelief.     New  York. 
40 


604  APPENDIX. 

Hughes,  T.— Religio  Laici.     London,  1861. 

Ikrationalism  of  Infidelity,  a  Reply  to  Newman's  "  Phases."     London, 

1853. 
James,  H.— The  Old  and  New  Theology.     London,  1861. 
Jelf,  W.  E.— Supremacy  of  Scripture,  a  Letter  to  Dr.  Temple.     London. 

1861. 
Kinoslet,  0.— Sermons  for  the  Times.     London.  1858. 

Sermons;  Good  News  of  God.     London,  1859. 

Langford,  J.  A.— Religious  Skepticism  and  Infidelity.    London,  1850. 
Leoky,  W.  E.  H.— History  of  the  Rise  and  Influence  of  the  Spirit  of  Ra- 
tionalism in  Europe.    2  vols.    London,  1865. 
Lee,  W.— Recent  Forms  of  Unbelief;  Some  Account  of  Renan's  Vie  de 

J6sus.     London,  1864. 
MoOatjl,  A.— Rationalism  and  Deistic  Infidelity.    Three  Letters.    London, 

1861. 
MoOombie,  W.— Modern  Civilization  in   Relation  to   Christianity.     Lon- 
don, 1863. 
Maokay,  R.  W. — The  Tubingen  School  and  its  Antecedents     a  Review 
of  the  History  and  Present  Condition  of  Modern  Theology      London. 

Rise  and  Progress  of  Christianity.    London,  1854. 

Malan,  S.  C— Philosophy  or  Truth  ?     London,  1865. 
Mansel,   H.  L.— Limits  of  Religious  Thought;  Bampton  Lectures.     Lon- 
don, 1859. 

Examination  of  Maurice's  stricture  on  Bampton  Lecture.    London, 

1859. 
Maueioe,  F.  D.— Claims  of  the  Bible  and  of  Science.     London,  1862. 

Theological  Essays.     2d  Ed.     London,  1853. 

What  is  Revelation  ?     London,  1859. 

Miall,  E.— Basis  of  Belief:  Examination  of  Christianity.     London   1861. 
Nelson,  D.— Infidelity  ;  its  Cause  and  Cure.     London,  1853. 
Newman,  F.  W.—  Phases  of  Faith.    London,  1860. 

Essays  towards  a  Church  of  the  Future.     London,  1854. 

Theism,  Doctrinal  and  Practical.     London,  1858. 

The  Soul :  its  Sorrows  and  Aspirations.     London,  1861. 

Sermons  on  Theory  of  Religious  Belief.     London,  1844. 

—  Development  of  Christian  Doctrine.     London,  1846. 

Notes,  G.  N.— Theological  Essays.     3d  Ed.     Boston,  1860. 

This  work  contains  essays  by  Kowland  Williams,  Jowett,  Powell,  Stanley,  and  others.    It 
advocates  the  Broad  Church  theories. 

O'Connoe,  W.  A. — Miracles  not  Antecedently  Incredible.      London,  18«M 
Palmes,  G.— Scripture  Facts  and  Scientific  Doubts.    Edinburgh,  1863. 

A  Defense  of  Scripture  from  the  objections  of  Geologists,  Statisticians,  and  otheis. 

Parker,  Theo. — Discourses  on  Religion.     Boston,  1842. 

Sermons  on  Theism,  Atheism,   and   Popular  Theology.     Boston 

1853. 

Ten  Sermons  on  Religion.     Boston,  1853. 

World  of  Matter  and  Mind.     Boston,  1865. 

Extracts  from  unpublished  sermons. 


APPENDIX.  605 

Parkinson,  R.— Rationalism  and  Revelation.     London,  1838. 
Paton,  J.  B. — A  Review  of  the  "Vie  de  Jesus"  of  M.  Renan.   London,  1864. 
Peabody,  A.  P.— Christianity  the  Religion  of  Nature.     Boston,  1863 
Peabson,  T.— Infidelity.     Republished  from  London  Ed.  in  N.  Y.,  1853. 
Poetek,  J.  L.— The  Pentateuch  and  the  Gospel.     London,  1864. 
Pbogbess  of  Religious  Thought,  as  illustrated  in  the  Protestant  Church 
of  France.     Ed.  by  J.  R.  Beard.     London,  1861. 

This  work  contains  essays  by  Messrs.  Colani,  Scholten,  Beville,  Scherer,  and  Benan. 

PJ6ET,  E.  B  —  Historical  Inquiry  into  German  Rationalism.    London,  1828. 

Daniel  the  Prophet.     London,  1865. 

Rationalism  and  Revelation. — (Anon.)     London,  1865. 
Religious  Aspects  of  the  Age.     New  York.     1858. 
Kigg,  J.  H.— Modern  Anglican  Theology.     London,  1859. 
Ripley. — Latest  Forms  of  Infidelity.     Boston,  1840. 
Robins,  S.— Defense  of  the  Faith:  Forms  of  Unbelief.    London,  1861. 
Rose,  H.  J. — State  of  Protestantism  in  Germany.     2d  Ed.     London,  1829. 
Rydeb,  A.  G.— Scriptural  Doctrine  of  Acceptance  with  God,  considered 
in  reference  to  Neologian  Hermeneutics.     London,  1865. 

Sawyer,  L.  A. — Daniel  with  its  Apocryphal  Additions.     Boston,  1863. 
Schaff,  P.— Germany  ;  its  Theology,  &c.     Philada.,  1857. 

The  Person  of  Christ;  The  Miracle  of  History,  with  a  Reply  to 

Strauss  and  Renan.     Boston,  1865. 

One  of  the  best  of  the  recent  replies  to  the  Bationalists. 

Schaff  and  Rottssell—  The  Christ  of  the  Gospels,  and  the  Romance  of 
M.  Renan.     London,  1864. 

Schmuokeb,  S.  M.— Errors  of  Modern  Infidelity  Refuted.     Phila.,  1848. 
Seaman,  M. — Christian  Armed  against  Infidelity.     London,  1837. 
Sewell,  "W. — On  the  Inspiration  of  the  Holy  Scripture.     London,  1861. 
Smith,  C. — Prize  Essays  on  Infidelity.     London,  1861. 
Smith,  G.— Rational  Religion  and  Objections  of  Bampton  Lectures  for  '58. 

London,  1861. 
Squiee,  M.  P.— Reason  and  the  Bible.     New  York,  1860. 
Stanley,  A.  P. — The  Bible  :  Its  Form  and  Substance.     London,  1865. 
Taylob,  J.  J. — Retrospect  of  Religious  Life  in  England.     1845. 
Testimony  of  Skeptics  to  the  Truth  of  Christianity.     London,  1861. 
Thompson.  R.  A. — Christian  Theism.     London,  1863. 
Teaot8  foe  Peiests  and  People,  by  various  writers,  1st  and  2d  series. 

London,  1862. 

TYckee,  L. — Lectures  on  Infidelity.     New  York,  1837. 
ruLLiDGE,  H—  Tiiumphs  of  the  Bible.     New  York,  1863. 

A  defense  of  Scripture  against  the  objections  of  the  Skeptical  Scientific  School. 

M  alker.   J.   B. — Philosophy  of  Skepticism   and  Ultraism.     New  York, 

1857. 
■Walthee,  D. — Reply  to  Newman's  Phases  of  Faith.     London,  1851. 
Whately,  Abp. — Essays  on  Dangers  to  Christian  Faith.     I  nndon.  1857. 


606  APPENDIX. 

Westfield,  T.  C. — Seven  Essays  on  Universal  Science,  embracing  Inves- 
tigations of  the  Mosaic  Cosmogony,  and  the  Interpretation  of  the 
Scriptures.     London,  1863. 

A  Defense  of  the  Harmony  of  Science  and  Revelation. 

Williams,  R. — Rational  Godliness  after  the  Mind  of  Christ.     Lond.,  1855. 
Woodman,  W. — Is  the  Bible  a  Divine  Revelation?     London,  1862. 
Woodswokth,  C. — Inspiration  of  the  Bible.    Five  Lectures.   London,  1862, 
Young,  J. — Christ  of  History :  an  Argument.     3d  Ed.     London,  1861. 

Province  of  Reason ;  a  Criticism  on  Mansel.     London,  1860. 

Young,  J.  R. — Modern  Skepticism,  viewed  in  Relation  to  Modern  Science. 
London,  1865. 

This  work  is  an  excellent  answer  to  the  doctrines  of  Colenso,  Huxley,  Lyell,  and  Darwin, 
respecting  the  Noachian  Deluge,  the  Antiquity  of  Man,  and  the  Origin  of  Species. 


LITERATURE  OF  UNITARIANISM  AND  UNIVERSALISM. 

For  the  bibliography  of  the  Trinitarian  Controversy  in  England,  extending 
through  the  former  half  of  the  eighteenth  century,  consult  Watts1 
Bibliotheca  Britannica,  4  vols.  Edinburgh,  1824;  and  Biographia 
Britannica,  7  vols,  folio,  1747.  Concerning  the  discussion  on  1  John, 
v.  7,  consult  Darling,  Cyclopaedia  Bibliographia ;  London,  1854. 
For  other  Unitarian  publications,  in  addition  to  those  mentioned 
below,  see  Beard,  Unitarian  ism  in  its  Actual  Condition,  pp.  327-29. 

The  following  table  of  Unitarian  and  Universalist  Literature  has  refer- 
ence to  only  two  doctrines  :  the  Trinity  and  Future  Punishment. 

Baker,  A. — Our  God  a  Consuming  Fire.     London,  1864. 

Barclay,  J. — Socinianism  and  Irvingism  Refuted.     London,  1845. 

Barling,  J.— Review  of  Trinitarianism.     London,  1847. 

Barlow,  J.  W. — Eternal  Punishment  and  Eternal  Death.     London,  1864. 

Barret,  B.  F. — Letters  on  the  Divine  Trinity.     New  York,  1860. 

Christ  the  Interpreter  of  Scripture.     London,  1865. 

Beard,  J.  R. — Historic  and  Artistic  Illustrations  of  the  Trinity.  London, 
1864. 

Unitarianism  in  its  Actual  Condition.     London,  1849. 

Reasons  why  I  am  a  Uniiarian.     London,  1860. 

Bellows,  H.  W. — Phi  Beta  Kappa  Oration.     1853. 

Until  the  middle  of  the  yt'ar  1850,  this  author  was  the  principal  writer  for  the  Chi-istian 
inquirer,  New  York. 

Belsham.  T. — Calm  Inquiry  into  Script.  Doctrine  concerning  the  Perse  n 

of  Christ. 
Brooks,  E.  G. — Universalism  a  Practical  Power.     New  York,  1863. 
Brothers'  Controversy  on  Unitarian  Opinions.     London,  1835 
Burnap,  G.  "W. — Unitarianism.     Boston,  1855. 

Trinity.     Boston,  1845. 

Evidences.     Boston,  1855. 

Carpenter,  L. — Examination  of  the  Charges  against  Unitarians.  Bristol, 
1820. 


APPENDIX.  607 

Channing,  W.  E. — Complete  Works.     6  vols.     Boston,  1841-46. 

Channing,  W.  H. — Meraoir  of  W.  E.  Channing.     3  vols,  1843. 

Clark,  D.  W. — Man  all  Immortal.     Cincinnati,  1864. 

Coute,  J. —Essays  on  Socinianism.     London,  1850. 

Denison,  H.  M. — Review  of  Unitarian  Views.     Louisville,  Ky.,  1855. 

Dewey,  O. — Discourses;  Controv.  Theol.,  etc.     6  vols.     1846-47-63. 

Dexter,  H.  M.— Verdict  of  Reason  on   the   question  of  the  Impenitent 

Dead.     Boston,  1865. 
Disjsey,  J. — Remarks  on  Tumline's  Charge.     London,  1812. 

Sermons.     4  vols.     London,  1793-1818. 

Ellis,  G.  E. — Half  Century  of  the  Unitarian  Controversy.     Boston,  1857. 

Farley,  F.  A. — Unitarianism  Defined.     Boston,  1860. 

F  urn-ess,  W.  H. — Jesus  and  his  Biographers.     Boston,  1838. 

History  of  Jesus.     Boston,  1850. 

Veil  Partly  Lifted.     1864. 

Tbe  author  repudiates  the  atonement.  "  The  doctrine  of  the  Atonement,"  says  1  e, 
"  which  is  especially  cherished  as  the  distinguishing  idea  of  Christianity,  is  only  a  form  of 
the  radical  error  from  ■which  false  religion  has  sprung  ever  since  the  world  began  ;  the  error, 
namely,  of  supposing  that  human  guilt  is  to  be  expiated,  not  by  change  of  character,  but  by 
offerings  and  sacrifices.''  The  sacrifice  of  Christ  "  is  the  world-old  error,  thinly  disguised, 
culminating  in  its  most  monstrous  form.  Even  if  it  were  new,  it  has  no  place  among  the 
teachings  of  Jesus.  He  never  taught  this  nor  any  of  its  associated  dogmas.  Not  a  word 
of  his  gives  them  the  slightest  color  of  authority."  Pp.  4,  5.  Such  language  comes  with  an 
ill  grace  from  one  who  attacks  M.  Renan.  See  Chapter  on  Christ's  "  childlikeness." 
Wherein,  we  ask,  is  the  Frenchman  worse  than  the  Philadelphian  ? 

Gage,  W.  L. — Trinitarian  Sermons  to  a  Unitarian  Congregation  Boston, 
1860. 

Hare,  E. — Principal  Doctrines  of  Christianity  Defended  against  the  Errors 
of  Socinianism.     New  York. 

Hovey,  A. — State  of  Impenitent  Dead.    Boston,  1859. 
Hudson,  C.  F. — Debt  and  Grace.     Boston,  1857. 

Human  Destiny;  a  Critique  of  Universalism.     Boston,  1861. 

Job  the  Abbot. — Reasons  for  Abandoning  Trinitarian  Doctrines.  Lon- 
don, 1841. 

Jones,  T. — Immanuel;  or,  Scriptural  views  of  Jesus  Christ.     Lond.,  1856. 
Kenbiok.  T. — Unitarian  Exposition  of  the  New  Testament.     New  York. 
Ker,  W. — The  Popular  Views  of  Immortality,  Everlasting  Punishment, 

and  the  State  of  Separate  Souls,  brought  to   the   Test  of  Scripture. 

London,  1865. 

Kidd,  W.  J. — Reflections  on  Unitarianism.     London,  1835. 

Kohlman,  A. — Complete  Refutation  of  Unitarianism.     Washington,  1821. 

Lake,  C.  W. — The  Inspiration  of  Scripture  and  Eternal  Punishment.  Lon- 
don, 1864. 

Landis,  R.  W. — Immortality  of  the  Soul,  and  Final  Condition  of  the 
wicked.     New  York,  1859. 

One  of  the  best  arguments  in  favor  of  Eternal  Punishment. 

Lardner,  N. — Complete  Works.     17  vols.     London,  1727-57. 

Letters  on  Nature  and  Duration   of  Future  Punishment.     London. 

1835. 
Lindbey,  T. — Apology.     London,  1774. 
Sequel.     London,  1776. 


608  APPENDIX. 

Lindsey,  T. — Historical  View  of  Unitarian  Doctrine  from  Reformation. 
London,  1783. 

Vindiciaa  Priestlianse.     London,  1788. 

K aetineau,  J. — Rationale  of  Religious  Inquiry.     London,  1839. 

Endeavors  after  the  Christian  Life,  2  vols.     London,  1843. 

Studies  of  Christianity.     London,  1858. 

Mattison,  H. — Immortality  of  the  Soul.     Philadelphia,  1865. 

Mellis,  J. — Lectures  on  Points  of  the  Jnitarian  Controversy.  London, 
1846. 

Minton,  S. — Lectures  on  Unitarianism.     London,  1847. 

Mitchell,  E. — The  Christian  Universalist.     New  Haven,  1833. 

Monsell,  C.  A. — Sermons:    Temporal  Punishment  of  Sin.     London,  1845. 

Mooke,  D. — The  Age  and  the  Gospel :  to  which  is  added  a  Discourse  on 
Final  Retribution.     London,  1865. 

Mokse,  J. — True  Reasons.     Boston,  1805. 

Appeal  to  the  Public.     Boston,  1814. 

Mortlock,  E. — Sermons  on  Doctrine  of  the  Trinity.     London,  1844. 

Nemesis  Saoea. — Inquiries  into  Scriptural  Doctrine  of  Retribution.  Lon- 
don, 1856. 

Newton,  Sie  I. — Views  on  Points  of  Unitarian  Doctrine.  Republished. 
London,  1856. 

Noel,  B.  W. — Christianity  compared  with  Unitarianism.     London,  1851. 

Norton,  A. — True  and  False  Religion ;  in  Christian  Disciple.     1820-22. 

Genuineness  of  the  Gospels,  3  vols.     Boston,  1851-44. 

Tracts  concerning  Christianity.     Cambridge,  1852. 

Internal  Evidences.     Boston,  1855. 

Statement  of  Reasons.     Boston,  1856. 

Ore. — Unitarianism  in  the  Present  Time.     Boston,  1863. 

Osgood,  S. — Christian  Biography.     New  York,  1851. 

The  Coming  Church  and  its  Clergy.     1858. 

Palfrey,  J.  G. — Evidences  of  Christianity.     Boston,  1843. 

Peabody,  A.  P. — Christian  Doctrine.     Boston,  1844. 

Christianity  the  Religion  of  Nature.     Boston,  1863. 

Power,  J.  H. — Exposition  of  Universalism.     New  York. 

Peioe,  R.- -Dissertations  on  Provid.  Chnsti'acity.     London,  1772. 

Sermons  on  Christian  Doctrine.     London,  1787. 

Priestley,  J.— Defenses  of  Unitarianism,  2  vols.     London,  1787-89. 

For  fun  account  of  this  writer's  many  works,  consult  Darling,  Cyclopaedia  Bibliographic, 
pp.  2454-58. 

Salmon,  G. — The  Eternity  of  Future  Punishment.     London,  1865. 
Sherlock,  W. — An  Essay  on  Future  Punishment.     London,  1865. 
Short  Reasons  for  Belief  in  the  Divinity  of  Christ.     London,  1843. 
Sopkr,  E. — Doctrine  of  the  Trinity  proved  from  Scripture.     London.  1853. 
Sprague,  W.  B. — Annals  of  the  American  Unit.  Pulpit.    New  York,  1865. 
Stuart,  M. — Exegetical  Essays  on  Futnre  Punishment.     London,  1848. 
Thayer. — Theology  of  Universalism.     Boston,  1862. 


APPENDIX.  609 

Thompson,  J.  P. — Love  and  Penalty.     New  York,  1865. 

Thompson,  S. — Scripture  Refutation  of  Unitarianism.     London.  1838. 

Tubneb,  "W. — Lives  of  eminent  Unitarians.     London,  1840-3. 

Unitarian,  How  I  became  a. — By  a  Clergyman  of   the  Pntestant   E. 

Church.     Boston,  1852. 
Uhiversalism  against  Itself. — Cincinnati,  O. 
Universalismus,  Dee. — Gott  alles  in  Allen.     Stuttgart,  1862. 
Waee,  H.— Complete  "Works.     Boston,  1847. 
Waee,  W. — Lettters  to  Trinitarians  and  Calvinists.     Boston,  182Q. 

American  Unitarian  Biography.     Boston,  1850. 

Whately,  A. — Scriptural  Revelation  respecting  Future  State.  Lond.,  1858. 
Whitman,  B. — Friendly  Letters  to  a  Universalist.     Boston,  1850. 
Whittemore,   T. — History  of  Universalism.     New  Ed.   Vol.  I.     Boston, 

1860. 
Williamson,  H. — Exposition  and  Defense  of  Universalism.     New  York, 

1840. 
Wilson,  J. — Scripture  Proofs  of  Unitarianism.     Boston. 
Woods,  L.— Letters  to  Unitarians,  and  Reply  to  Dr.  "Ware.     New  York. 
Worcester,  N.— Review  of  Testimonies,  etc.,  in  Bible  News.  Boston,  1810. 

Address  to  Trinitarian  Clergy.     Boston,  1814. 

Yates.— Vindication  of  Unitarianism,  4th  Ed.     London,  1850. 


UNITARIAN    PERIODICALS. 

Uhbistian  Examiner,  Boston. 

Christian  Inquirer,  New  York. 

Cheistian  Registee,  Boston. 

Jouenal  of  Amebic  an  Unit.  Assoc.  Boston. 

Monthly  Cheistian  Registee,  Boston. 

Monthly  Religious  Magazine,  Boston. 

Religious  Edo-'-itob,  Boston. 


UNIVERSALIST    PERIODICALS. 

Bboad  Chuecj*  Pulpit,  New  York. 
Cheistian  Ambassadoe,  New  York. 
Cheistian  Fbeeman,  Boston. 
Cheistian  Repositoey,  Montpelier,  Vt. 
Gospel  Banneb,  Augusta,  Me. 
Heeald  and  Eba,  Indianapolis,  Ind. 
Manfobd's  Magazine,  St.  Louis,  Mo. 
Mybtle,  Boston. 
Ladies'  Repositoey,  Boston. 
Stab  in  the  "West,  Cincinnati,  O. 
Stab  of  the  Pacific,  Petaluma,  CaL 


610  APPENDIX. 

Teumpet,  Boston. 

Universalist  Hebald,  Montgomery,  Ala. 
Univeesalist  Quarterly,  Boston. 
Young  Christian,  Cincinnati,  0. 
Youths1  Friend,  Cincinnati,  O. 


For  full  bibliographical  accounts  of  the  controversy  between  the  orthodos 
theologians  of  New  England  and  the  Unitarians,  during  the  present  cen- 
tury ;  and  of  the  discussion  on  the  Person  of  Christ  provoked  by  the 
speculations  of  Horace  Bushnell,  consult  Hagenbach,  History  of  Doc- 
trines, Smith's  Ed.     New  York,  1862. 


INDEX. 


A  BREST,  Petkb,  his  exegetical 
labors,  345. 

Age,  present,  declared  Rationalistic 
by  Lecky.  23. 

America,  relations  between  France 
and,  536. 

American  Church,  peculiarities  of, 
536.  Influenced  by  skeptical  de- 
nominations, 571.  Duty  of  the 
American  Church  to  guard  against 
infidelity,  575. 

American  civilization,  undergoing  a 
change,  576. 

Andrea,  John  Valentine ;  poverty 
and  early  difficulties,  53.  His 
satire  on  the  Church,  53.  Excite- 
ment produced  by  it,  54.  Service 
rendered  by  it,  54.  Quotation 
from  Andrea's  Christianopolis,  61. 
Satire  on  the  degenerate  preach- 
ing of  his  time,  71-73. 

Apostolical  Succession,  a  doctrine  of 
the  High  Church,  514. 

Arndt,  John;  his  service  to  the 
Church ;  work  on  Time  Christi- 
anity ;  motives  leading  him  to 
write,  49.  Reception  of  his  work 
by  the  people,  50.  Arndt's  calm 
spirit,  50.  He  was  charged  with 
mysticism,  50.  Opposition  to  him, 
51.     Popularity  of  his  book,  51. 

Arnold  Gottfried,  the  historian  of 
Pietism,  18.  His  history  of 
Churches  and  Heretics,  98.  Charged 
with  Separatism,  98.  He  con- 
tended for  the  unification  of  Mys- 
ticism and  Pietism,  98. 

Arnold,  Thomas,  his  Sermons,  521. 
His  opinions,  521-523. 

Atonement,  Unitarian  opinion  of, 
550,  551. 


Auberlen  on  mission  of  Pietism,  tes- 
timony of,  86-88. 

Augsburg  Confession,  38. 

August,  Karl.  His  care  to  secure 
the  society  of  distinguished  lite- 
rarv  men  around  his  court,  169, 
170. 


BAHRDT,  his  deceit  and  blasphe- 
my, 139.  His  works,  140.  His 
condition  when  at  Giessen,  140. 
His  rapid  decline,  141.  He  en- 
gaged   in    numerous    enterprises. 

141.  Became    an   inn-keeper    at 
Halle,  142.     His  wretched  death, 

142.  He  was  the  climax  of  French 
skepticism  in  Germany,  142. 

Basedow.  An  innovation  in  German 
education,  184.  His  publications 
in  favor  of  a  new  system,  184. 
His  visionary  plans,  185.  Popular 
indorsement  of  his  impracticable 
plans,  185.  His  final  fall,  186. 
187. 

Baumgarten,  the  connecting  link  be- 
tween Pietism  and  Rationalism, 
111.  He  succeeded  Wolf  at  Halle, 
111.  His  extensive  acquirements, 
111,  112.  He  favored  the  introduc- 
tion of  English  Deism,  117. 

Baur  F.  C,  his  works  divided  into 
two  classes,  278.  His  views  of 
the  early  church,  278-280. 

Becker,  the  extreme  Rationalism 
contained  in  his  juvenile  publica- 
tions, 190-192. 

Bekker,  Balthnzer,  a  disciple  of  Dea 
Cartes,  347.  His  World  Bewitched, 
347.  His  excommunication,  ant1 
personal  appearance,  347,  348. 


612 


INDEX. 


Bellows,  against  orthodoxy,  545,  546. 
Opposes  original  sin,  548-550. 

Belsham,  his  work  on  American 
Unitarianism,  539,  540. 

Bengel,  his  purpose  to  lead  the 
people  to  a  better  understanding 
of  the  Bible,  101.  Kahnis'  appre- 
ciation of  Bengel,  101. 

Bethman-Hollweg,  influence  on  the 
Church  Diet,  319. 

Bilderdyk,  at  the  head  of  the  modern 
school  of  Dutch  poetry,  359. 

Boehme,  Jacob,  shoemaker  at  Gor- 
litz ;  his  pure  purposes,  46 ;  his 
mysterious  life,  47 ;  method  of  com- 
position, 47  ;  description  by  him- 
self of  his  seasons  of  eostasy,  48  ; 
his  Aurora,  48 ;  last  words,  49. 

Bolingbroke,  introducing  the  French 
spirit  into  England  in  the  Eight- 
eenth Century,  442.  His  prin- 
ciples, 442,  443. 

Broad  Church,  has  lately  acquired 
great  influence,  531.  First  Broad 
Church  corresponds  with  Philo- 
sophical Rationalism,  519.  Its 
tenets,  520,  529,  530.  Second 
Broad  Church  is  thoroughly  Ra- 
tionalistic, 530.  Points  of  differ- 
ence from  the  First  Broad  Church, 
531. 

Bunsen,  his  Biblical  Researches  re- 
reviewed  in  Essays  and  Reviews, 
485-487. 

CALIXTUS,  George,  as  a  theolo- 
gian, 40 ;  professor  at  Helmstedt, 
41  ;  travel*,  and  literary  style,  41 ; 
impression  made  upon  his  mind  by 
prevailing  controversies,  41;  his  ar- 
dent desire  to  unite  conflicting  ele- 
ments, 41 ;  his  sorrow  at  the  abuse 
of  preaching,  41,  42  ;  advice  on 
preaching,  42 ;  his  Chief  Points 
of  the  Christian  Religion,  43 ;  ac- 
cusations against  him,  44 ;  his  fruit- 
less labors,  44.  Testimony  on  neg- 
lect of  children,  64,  65. 

Campe's  influence  upon  the  youth  of 
Germany,  188.     His  works,  188. 

Oapadose,  an  agent  in  the  revival  in 
the  Dutch  Church,  359. 

Oarlyle,  Thomas,  parent  of  Literary 
Rationalism  in  England,  473.  De- 
rived his  svstetn  from  the  German 


philosophers,  473.  Opinions,  4/3- 
476.  His  influence  upon  the  young, 
475,  476.  Vicious  influence  of  his 
sentiments,  477. 

Channing,  W.  Ellery,  leader  of  Amer- 
ican Unitarianism,  541.  His  works. 
541.  Mental  transitions,  542.  Re- 
pudiation of  orthodoxy,  542.  His 
opinions,  543,  544. 

Chantepie  de  la  Saussaye,  one  of  the 
leaders  of  the  Ethical-Irenical 
School  in  the  Dutch  Church,  375. 
Preaches  in  Rotterdam,  376.  As- 
sisted in  forming  society  called 
Seriousness  and  Peace,  376.  His 
work  on  modern  materialism,  379. 
His  opinions,  379,  380.  His  view 
of  the  future  of  the  Church,  380. 

Charities  of  Protestant  Germany, 
311.  They  do  not  interfere  with 
each  other,  331.  Charities  of 
French  Protestantism,  423. 

Christ,  opinions  of  German  Ration- 
alists on  person  of,  214-217.  Life 
of  Christ  described  by  numerous 
replies  to  Strauss,  274,  275. 

Christianity,  Theo.  Parker's  view  of, 
567,  568. 

Chubb,  his  three  principles,  115,  116. 

Church  and  State,  union  of,  presup- 
poses great  purity,  535. 

Church,  affiliations  of  Rationalism 
with  the  German,  26,  27.  The 
church  has  yet  to  vanquish  thor- 
oughly the  attacks  upon  her  faith, 
35.  Condition  of  the  German 
Church  when  Rationalism  was  at 
its  height,  197.  Reconstruction 
of  the  church  by  Frederic  William 
III ,  230,  231. 

Church  history,  improved  indirectly 
by  the  labors  of  the  Rationalists, 
581-583. 

Church  of  England,  two  parties  in, 
507.  Tabular  view  of  the  clerg* 
of  the  Established  Church,  532. 

Classes  in  Germany,  immorality  of 
higher,  77,  78. 

Clergy,  immorality  of  German,  in 
seventeenth  century,  73, 74, 7fi,note. 
The  clergy  were  the  agents  of 
spiritual  declension  in  Germany,  76. 

Cocceian  Controversy,  literature  of, 
337.  The  excitement  occasioned 
by  the  conflict,  343. 


INDEX. 


613 


Cocceians  and  Voetians,  the  leading 
parties  in  the  Dutch  Church,  340. 
Principles  of  each,  340.  Cocceians 
studied  the  Scriptures,  but  differed 
from  the  text,  341. 

Oocceius,  opponent  of  Scholasticism 
in  the  Du;ch  Church,  336.  Studies 
and  early  writings,  336,  337.  Pro- 
fessor in  Leyden  University,  337. 
His  opinion  on  the  Sabbath,  337. 
Disciples,  337.  Charges  against 
Cocceius,  337,  338.  Agreement 
between  him  and  Descartes,  338. 

Colani,  one  of  principal  theologians 
of  French  Critical  School.  His 
opinions,  401,  402. 

Colenso,  Bishop  John  William,  re- 
semblance between  him  and  Wolff, 
107,  108.  His  work  on  the  Penta- 
teuch and  Book  of  Joshua,  499. 
His  criticisms,  499-503.  Excite- 
ment occasioned  by  his  work,  503. 
Judicial  proceedings  against  Colen- 
so, 503-505.  Literature  of  the 
controversy  occasioned  by  him, 
600-602,  Appendix.  Colenso's  re- 
turn to  Southern  Africa  without 
a  people  or  a  clergy,  505.  Testi- 
mony of  a  Mussulman  against  him, 
505. 

Coleridge,  opinions  of.  455-462.  His 
struggles,  457.  Definitions  and 
distinctions  of  Coleridge,  460,  461. 
His  school,  462. 

Compensations  of  history,  453. 

Composition,  method  of  literary,  in 
Germany  in  17th  century,  67. 

Comte,  390. 

Conferences,  French  Protestant,  their 
recent  action  in  favor  of  orthodoxy, 
419-121. 

Confessions,  union  of  Lutheran  and 
Reformed.  231. 

Controversy,  Antinomian,  Adiapho- 
ristic,  Synergistic,  Osiandric,  Cryp- 
to-Calvinistic,  39.  Syncretistic 
controversy,  40. 

Coquerel,  A.,  Jr.,  editor  of  the  Lien, 
406.  Refusal  of  the  Presbyterial 
Council  to  re-appoint  him  as  suf- 
fragan m  a  Protestant  pulpit  in 
Paris,  408.  His  opinions,  407, 408. 
His  christology,  408,  409. 

Courts,  licentiousness  of  German, 
during  the  Thirty  Years'  war,  78, 


DOG 

79.     Extravagance  on  matrimonial 
and  baptismal  occasions,  79,  80. 


DA  COSTA,  an  agent  in  tne  re- 
vival in  the  Dutch  Church,  359. 
De  Cock,  leader  of  the  secession  from 
the  Dutch  Church,  362.     Result* 
of  his  expulsion  by  ecclesiastical 
authority,  363. 
Deism,  English,  defined  by  Lechler, 

113.  The  principle  on  which  it 
started,  113.  Its  superiority  to 
the  Deism  of  France,  113.  Its 
origin  due  to  prominence  given  to 
nature  by  Lord  Bacon,  114.  Ger- 
man opposition  to  English  Deism, 

114.  Rapid  progress  of  Deism  in 
Germany,  117.  Foreign  infidelity 
hastened  by  the  quibbles  of  ortho- 
dox theologians,  125.  English 
Deism  influencing  the  Dutch 
Church,  350-352.  Did  not  possess 
advantages  equal  to  those  of  Ger- 
man Rationalism,  440. 

Deism,  French,  cooperating  with 
English  Deism,  toward  the  over- 
throw of  orthodoxy  in  Germany, 
122. 

Deists,  English,  translations  of  their 
works  into  tbe  German  Language, 
117.  Translations  into  Dutch,  351, 
352. 

De  Pressense  prophesies  good  results 
from  Renan's  Life  of  Jems,  406. 
Leader  of  evangelical  theologians 
in  the  French  Church,  411.  Edits 
the  Revue  Chretienne,  411.  His 
opinions,  412-415.  Opposes  the 
union  of  Church  and  State,  415. 
Remarks  on  the  beneficial  results 
of  Renan's  Life  of  Jesus,  585,  586. 

Descartes,  apostle  of  French  Ration- 
alism, 338,  339,  389. 

De  Wette,  twofold  character  of  his 
opinions,  246,  247.  His  opinion 
of  John,  the  Evangelist,  247. 
View  of  the  Scriptures,  248.  Hia 
theological  novel,  248. 

Dinter,  a  skeptical  writer  for  chil- 
dren, 189,  190. 

Dogmatism,  one  of  the  elements  of 
the  degeneracy  of  the  Dutch 
Church,  336. 


614 


INDEX. 


l>orner,  his  complex  style,  290.  His 
work  on  the  Person  of  Christ,  290 
-292.  Conception  of  Christianity, 
290. 

Doubt,  religious,  and  innovation, 
must  be  estimated  by  four  consid- 
erations, 32. 


EDELMANN,  Kahnis'  testimony 
concerning  him,  138, 139. 

Education  in  Germany,  defects  of,  184. 

Edwards,  Jonathan,  successor  of 
Stoddard,  at  Northampton,  538. 

Endyn,  his  Scripture  account  of  Jesus 
Christ,  539. 

Empirical-Modern  School  in  the 
Dutch  Church,  371.  It  has  few 
points  of  sympathy  with  evangeli- 
cal Christianity,  374.  Its  princi- 
ples, 374,  375. 

English  Church  in  the  eighteenth 
century,  low  state  of,  449-452. 
Condition  of  English  Church  at 
the  Peace  of  1815,  454. 

English  literature  in  the  eighteenth 
century,  character  of,  440,  441. 
Brilliant  writers,  441.  English 
literature  influenced  by  the  French 
spirit,  441. 

Epicureanism  prevalent  in  Germany 
before  the  Thirty  Years'  War,  78. 

Ernesti,  the  classic  scholar  of  his 
day,  125,  127. 

Essays  and  Reviews,  theology  of, 
482-495.  Opinions  of  evangelical 
German  theologians  on  the  Essays 
and  Reviews,  495,  496.  Publica- 
tions called  forth  by  that  work, 
497,  Appendix.  Judicial  proceed- 
ings against  the  authors  of  the  Es- 
says and  Reviews,  497,  498.  Lit- 
erature arising  from  the  publica- 
tion of  the  Essays  and  Reviews, 
603.     Appendix. 

Ethical-Irenical  School  in  the  Dutch 
Church,  375.     Its  leaders,  375. 

Ethics  in  the  Dutch  Church,  corrup- 
tion of,  335. 

Evangelical  Church  Diet  of  Germany, 
318.  Occasion  of  its  organization, 
318,  319.  First  session,  320-322. 
Practical  result,  of  the  first  session, 
322,  323.  Enlargement  of  opera- 
;ions,  323. 


Evangelical  Church  Gazette,  101, 
102. 

Evangelical  Dissenting  Chuich  of 
Switzerland,  rise  of,  428. 

Evangelical  French  School,  411.  Led 
by  E.  De  Pressense,  41 1 .  Defended 
by  Guizot,  416.  Fruits  of  the  Ja 
bors  of  the  evangelical  French 
theologians,  419.  Their  success 
evident  in  the  recent  action  of  the 
Protestant  Conferences.  419-421. 

Evangelizing  agencies  in  France, 
422-424. 


FALK,  at  Weimar,  312,  313.  He 
was  affected  by'  the  havoc  of  Na- 
poleon's army,  313.  Established 
a  Reformatory  for  children,  314. 
His  various  benefactions,  315. 
Farrar,  his  description  of  the  Wolfian 
philosophy,  110,  111. 

Feuerbach,  his  radical  Skepticism, 
282. 

Fichte,  relation  to  Kant,  163.  His 
system,  163.  His  Addresses  to  the 
German  People,  and  influence  of 
that  work,  222,  223. 

Fliedner,  established  a  Deaconess  In- 
stitute, 416.  Its  influence  in  other 
countries,  316,  317. 

Formula  Concordias,  39,  40. 

France,  adoption  of  English  Deism 
by,  117.  Irreligion  in  France  du- 
ring the  reign  of  Louis  XIV.,  117, 
118. 

Francke,  Augustus  Hermann,  testi- 
mony on  neglect  of  Scriptural 
studies,  69.  His  temperament,  93. 
Purity  of  his  purpose,  94.  His  ac- 
count of  his  conversion,  94.  His 
pulpit  ministrations  in  Halle,  95. 
His  Introduction  to  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, Hermeneutical  Lectures  and 
Method  of  Theological  Study,  95. 
He  founded  the  Orphan  House  at 
Halle,  95.  The  gradual  establish- 
ment of  that  institution,  95,  96. 
Condition  of  the  Orphan  House 
after  Francke'a  death,  96,  note. 
Theological  instruction  by  Francke 
and  his  coadjutors,  96.  Prolific 
power  of  the  Orphan  House,  97,  98. 

Francken,  his  Kernel  of  Divinity, 
346. 


LNDEX. 


615 


Frederic  the  Great,  withdrew  the 
royal  patronage  from  Halle.  100, 
101.  He  was  captivated  by  Vol- 
taire, 120.  His  systematic  attempt 
to  destroy  orthodoxy  in  his  king- 
dom, 122.  He  made  no  secret  of 
his  skepticism,  123.  Final  regret 
uf  his  religious  course,  on  seeing 
the  evil  effects  of  infidelity  upon 
his  people,  123,  124. 

Free  Congregations,  rise  and  influ- 
ence of,  284. 

Freeman,  Rev.  James,  Pastor  of 
King's  Chapel,  Boston,  539.  In- 
stallation as  the  first  Unitarian 
minister  in  America,  539. 

French  Church,  Protestant,  387. 
Skeptical  formalism  of  French 
Protestantism  in  the  beginning  of 
the  nineteenth  century,  387,  388. 
Opposition  to  the  French  Protes- 
tant Church,  411. 

French  Critical  School  of  Theology, 
391,  392.     Opinions,  393,  394. 

French  Literature  in  Europe,  preva- 
lence of,  391. 

French  Skeptics  upon  the  Church  of 
Holland,  influence  of,  352. 

French  Theology,  animation  of,  386. 

Frothingham,  O.  B.,  his  juvenile 
work,  572,  573.  Lecture  on  Lib- 
eral Christianity,  573-575. 

Future  Punishment,  opposition  of 
Unitarians  to,  552,  553. 


GAUSSEN,  leader  of  the  Evangel- 
ical Dissenting  Church  of  Swit- 
zerland, 428,  429. 

Geneva,  improvement  of  religious 
spirit  in,  430,  431. 

Gerhard,  John,  personal  qualities, 
and  rapid  attainments,  51.  Quo- 
tation from  his  exegetical  treatise, 
52. 

German  Theology,  affiliated  to  Phi- 
losophy, 155. 

Germany,  the  country  where  Ration- 
alism has  exerted  its  chief  influ- 
ence, 5.  Condition  of  Protestant 
Germany  at  the  commencement 
of  the  nineteenth  century,  220-222. 

Gibbon,  caprices  of.  447.  Work  on 
the  Roman  Empire,  447,  448.  Des- 
titution of  political  character,  448. 


God,  opinion  of  German  Rational- 
ists concerning,  199,  200.  Idea 
of  God  essential  to  success  of 
civil  government,  287.  Unitarian 
opinion  of  God,  547,  548. 

Goethe  at  Weimar,  179.  His  attach- 
ment to  Roman  Catholicism,  183. 
Influence  of  his  writings  on  the- 
ology, 183. 

Goodwin,  C.  W.,  on  the  Mosaic  Cos- 
mogony, in  Essays  and  Reviews. 
His  opinions,  491,  492. 

Gossner,  his  unsettled  life,  327. 
Providential  guidance  to  Protes- 
tantism, and  to  missionary  labors, 
327,  328. 

Griesbach  ;  he  aimed  to  establish  a 
system  of  natural  religion,  137, 138. 

Groen  Van  Prinsterer,  his  influence 
in  favor  of  home  missions,  360. 
Edited  The  Netherlander,  361. 
Defended  the  Secessionists  from 
the  Dutch  Church.  363. 

Groningen  School.  Its  origin,  organ, 
and  principal  tenets,  364,  365. 
Distinguished  for  its  ethical  sys- 
tem, 366.  No  place  for  the  Trini- 
ty in    the    Groningen    Theology, 

366.  Service  of  the  Groningens, 

367.  Their  failure  to  reach  their 
object,  367. 

Grotius,  forerunner  of  Ernesti,  127, 
334,  341. 

Grotz,  his  opinions,  403. 

Guericke,  called  attention  to  the  op- 
erations of  the  "  Friends  of  Light,'" 
284. 

Guizot,  his  deep  interest  in  recent 
French  Theology,  416.  His  late 
important  work  on  the  Christian 
Religion,  416-419. 

Gustavus  Adolphus  Union,  its  meth- 
od of  operation,  330.  Its  nine- 
teenth session,  330.  Results,  330, 
331. 


H 


ALF-WAY  Covenant,  538. 


Halle,  University  of;  occasion  of  its 
establishment,  93.  Its  faculty,  and 
the  work  before  it,  93.  The  new 
generation  of  professors  in  Hallo, 
99,  100.  Edict  of  Fred.  Wil.  I., 
that  all  theologians  must  study  in 
that  University,  100. 


616 


INDEX. 


Hamann,  inability  of,  and  his  coad- 
jutors to  resist  Rationalism  in  Ger- 
many, 196. 

Hare,  Julius  Charles,  disciple  of 
Coleridge,  462.  His  life  full  of 
incident,  463.  Ariew  of  Sacrifice, 
463.     Other  opinions,  464,  465. 

llarless,  an  opponent  of  Strauss,  271. 

Harms,  opposition  of  Claus,  to  union 
of  German  Churches,  231.  His 
95  Theses,  232-235.  The  excite- 
ment occasioned  by  the  publica- 
tion of  that  work,  235,  236. 

Harms,  Louis,  small  beginning  of 
his  missionary  enterprise,  328, 
329.     Final  success,  329,  330. 

Hegel,  his  relation  to  philosophy, 
164.  His  philosophy  reducible  to 
a  system  of  nature,  164.  His 
system,  165.  Fulfilment  of  his 
theory  of  antagonisms,  257.  The 
three  branches  of  his  school,  257, 
258, 

Heiigstenberg,his  Evangelical  Church 
Gazette  established  to  oppose  the 
prevalent  Rationalism,  270,  271. 
He  takes  highest  rank  in  the  Evan- 
gelical School  as  a  controversial- 
ist, and  expositor  of  the  Old  Tes- 
tament, 305.  Opposition  to  Pan- 
theism, 306.  Contributors  to  his 
journal,  306.  His  opinion  of  the 
Essays  and  Reriews,  496. 

Herbert.  Lord,  of  Cherbury  ;  his  re- 
flections on  the  publication  of  his 
Traetatus  de  Veritate,  114.  His 
view  of  education,  114. 

Herder,  adaptation  to  his  times,  171. 
His  creed,  172.  His  interest  in 
the  poetic  features  of  the  Bible, 
172,  173.  The  kind  of  love  which 
he  cherished  toward  the  Bible, 
174.  View  of  the  person  of 
Christ,  174.  Opinion  of  the  Gos- 
pels, 175.  Herder's  great  service 
to  the  Church,  176.  His  view  of 
the  pastorate,  176.  Character  of 
his  preaching.  177,  178.  Opposi- 
tion to  the  Kantian  Philosophy, 
178. 

High    Church   in  England,    rise   of, 

511.  Its   Conference   at   Hadley, 

512.  Doctrines  of  the  High 
Church,  512-515.  General  ser- 
vice of  the  High  Church,  515,  516. 


Hobbes;  his  estimate  of  religion,  114, 
115.  His  works  translated  into 
Dutch,  351. 

Hofstede  de  Groot,  in  conjunction 
with  Parean,  published  a  work  uc 
dogmatic  theology,  365.  Principle- 
taught  therein.  365,  366. 

Holland,  former  importance  of,  332, 
333.  Rise  of  Rationalism  in  Hoi 
land,  333.  Theological  publica- 
tions in  Holland,  334.  Popular 
acquaintance  with  theologv  in  Hol- 
land, 346. 

Church  of,  made  slow  pro- 
gress in  the  eighteenth  century, 
344.  Influenced  by  English  Deism. 
350.  Affected  by  French  Skep- 
ticism, 352.  Introduction  of  new 
hymn-book  into  the  Dutch 
Churches,  357,  358.  Dutch 
Church  now  in  an  important 
crisis,  381.  Causes  of  the  crisis. 
381,  382.  Dutch  Church  applying 
itself  to  practical  work.  382,  385. 

Holy  Ghost,  Unitarian  opinion  of. 
548. 

Homiletic  literature  of  the  Dutch 
Church,  335. 

Huguenots  of  France  were  received 
into  Holland,  and  exerted  a  bene- 
ficial influence  on  the  Dutch 
Church,  343. 

Humanists,  Aristotelian,  of  seven- 
teenth century,  6. 

Hume,  partook  of  the  prevalent 
French  spirit,  444.  His  errors. 
444.  Essay  on  Miracles,  445,  446. 
History  of  England,  446,  447. 

Hymns,  destruction  of  German,  193. 
Churches  rivaled  each  other  in 
adapting  their  hymn-books  to  Ra- 
tionalistic opinions,  194. 


INDIFFERENCE,  religious,  pro 
duced  in  Holland  by  the  French 
spirit,  353,  354. 

Infidelity  presents  a  systematic  and 
harmonious  history,  2.  Infidelity 
systematically  opposed  to  civil 
order  and  authority,  287. 

Inner  Mission  of  German  Protest- 
antism, 326,  327. 

Inspiration,  opinion  of  German  Ra- 
tionalists  on,    200,  202.      Ameri- 


INDEX. 


617 


IN8 


can    Unitarian    opinion  on  inspi- 
ration, 546,  547. 
Instruction   in   Germany,   improved 
character  of  religious,  307,  308. 


JACOBI,  the  opponent  of  the  Kan- 
tian philosophy,  162,  163.  Ser- 
vice to  evangelical  religion,  169. 

Journals  in  Germany,  theological, 
306,  307,  and  note.  Rationalistic 
Journals,  Appendix,  509.  Ration- 
alistic Journals  in  France,  Appen- 
dix, 593. 

Jowett,  his  commentaries,  481.  His 
view  of  the  Atonement,  482. 
Writes  in  Essays  and  Reviews  on 
the  interpretation  of  Scripture, 
493.     His  opinions,  494,  495. 


RANT,  his  superiority  to  other 
thinkers  of  his  time,  156.  His 
account  of  his  pious  mother,  156. 
His  system  published  by  a  student, 
Hippel,  157.  His  Critique  of  Pure 
Reason,  157.  That  work  popular- 
ized by  Shulze,  158.  Opponents 
of  the  Kantian  system  158. 
Kant's  statement  concerning  the 
limits  of  reason,  159.  General 
character  of  Kant's  criticism,  159, 
161.  Kant's  silence  on  the  posi- 
tive truths  of  Christianity,  161 
Moral  effect  of  the  Kantian  sys- 
tem, 162.  Thinkers  succeeding 
Kant,  165.     Their  service,  166. 

King's  Chapel,  Boston,  became  Uni- 
tarian. 538,  539. 

Kingsley,  Charles,  on  the  English 
mind,  influence  of,  468.  His  nu- 
merous works,  469.  His  opin- 
ions, 469-471.  Controversy  with 
Father  Newman,  517. 

Kleman,  work  on  connection  be- 
tween grace  and  duty,  350. 

Klopstock  innocently  commenced  the 
alteration  of  the  German  hymns, 
194. 


LANGE,   his  view  of  the  Church, 
296,  297. 
Larroque,   member    of  the    French 
Critical  School,  400. 


MED 

Lechler,  his  definition  of  English 
Deism,  113. 

Leibnitz,  the  author  of  the  Wolfian 
philosophy,  103.  His  Theodicy, 
103.  Philosophy  of  Leibnitz  con- 
fined to  the  learned,  104. 

Leo  the  Tenth,  skepticism  of,  113. 

Lessing,  his  object  in  publishing  the 
Wolf enb'uttel  Fragments,  152.  His 
opinions  in  partial  harmony,  at 
least,  with  that  work,  153.  Ho 
found  fault  with  his  age,  155. 

Lesson  taught  by  condition  of  Eng- 
land in  the  eighteenth  century,  440. 

LeVasser,  his  account  of  French  ir- 
religion  during  the  reign  of  Louis 
XIV;  117. 

Leyden  School  of  Theologians,  367. 
Its  origin,  368. 

Liberal  Catholic  School  of  France. 
Its  founders,  409.  Great  influence 
and  high  position  of  its  members, 
410. 

Liberal  Protestant  Union,  the  or- 
ganization of  French  Rationalists. 
393. 

Liberation,  beneficial  effects  of  Ger- 
man, 223,  224. 

Literary  Rationalism  in  England, 
owes  its  origin  to  Carlyle,  473. 

Literature,  theological,  defective 
character  of,  in  former  part  of 
seventeenth  century,  65,  66. 

Locke,  his  works  translated  into 
Dutch,  351. 

Low  Church,  in  England,  508.  Its 
seat  at  Cambridge,  508.  Conduct- 
ed by  vigorous  minds.  508.  Al- 
ways on  the  side  of  popular  re- 
form, 509.  Mis.-ionary  labors,  509, 
510.  Its  work  at  home,  510. 
Present  status,  510,  511. 


TlfANDEVILLE,    his    style    com- 

1VL  plimented  byMacaulay,  116. 

Maurice,  disciple  of  Coleridge,  465. 
Ideal  view  of  creation,  465,  46»5. 
Holds  that  Christ  is  the  archetype 
of  every  human  being,  466.  Hie 
system,  467.  His  permission  to 
officiate  in  the  Established  Church, 
468. 

Mediation-Theologians  of  Germany. 
288. 


61S 


INDEX. 


Melanchthon,  his  Apology  of  the  Con- 
fession, 38. 

Milton,  on  pride  of  the  Church,  and 
ecclesiastical  authority,  535,  536. 

Miracles,  the  Rationalists  deny  the 
possibility  of,  24.  Opinion  of 
German  Rationalists  concerning 
miracles,  207,  211.  Miracles, 
Hume  on,  445,  446. 

Missions  in  the  Dutch  Church,  383, 
384. 

Monod,  A.,  the  pioneer  of  the  refor- 
mation of  the  French  Protestant 
Church,  422. 

Montague,  house  of  Lady  Mary 
Wortley,  the  center  of  a  large  lit- 
erary group,  443. 

Mosheim,  his  opposition  to  the  in- 
troduction of  English  Deism,  117. 

Mtiller  and  Scriver  as  illustrations 
of  improved  literary  style,  before 
the  rise  of  Pietism,  83,  84. 

Music  in  the  German  Churches  made 
to  conform  to  Rationalism,  195. 
Decline  of  congregational  singing, 
195.. 


NEANDER,  fir-t  of  Mediation  The- 
ologians. His  youth,  and  early 
publications,  249.  Theological 
views,  249,  250.  The  chief  char- 
acteristic of  his  theology,  250. 
Various  writings,  251.  Conception 
of  Church  history,  251,  252.  Val- 
uable service  to  evangelical  theol- 
ogy, 252.  Relation  to  liis  times,  252. 
Personal  appearance,  253,  254. 
Life  of  Christ,  in  reply  to  Strauss, 
272.  273. 

Newman,  F.  W.  his  life  resembles 
Blanco  White's,  517.  His  Phases 
of  Faith,  518.  Became  a  Mission- 
ary, 518.     His  opinions,  518,  519. 

Nicolai,'  his  Universal  German  Li- 
brary, 147.  Object  of  that  journal 
to  oppose  all  orthodox  publications, 
147.  Its  great  influence,  147,  148. 
Berlin  affected  by  it,  148. 

Norton,  Andrews,  professor  in  Har- 
vard University,  540. 


OPZOOMER,  professor  at  Utrecht, 
371.     His  manual  of  logic,  371. 


Orthodoxy,     inactivity    of,    in    the 
Church  of  Holland,  356. 


PARKER,  Theodore,  as  a  refo-mer, 
564.  Personal  history,  565.  HU 
radicalism,  566.  His  theological 
opinions,  566-571. 

Pattison,  M.,  writes  in  Essays  and 
Reviews  on  Tendencies  of  Religious 
Thought  in  England,  1688-1750; 
492. 

Paul,  Jean,  called  attention  to  neces- 
sity of  parental  training  of  chil- 
dren, 187. 

Paulus,  attempt  of,  to  prove  Luther 
a  Rationalist,  31. 

Pecaut,  holds  that  Deism  should  be 
substituted  for  the  doctrines  of 
Protestantism,  402.  His  opinions, 
402,  403. 

Periodica]  skeptical  press  of  England, 
477. 

Pestalozzi's  labors  for  the  ameliora- 
tion of  orphans,  188.  His  ideal  of 
a  school,  188. 

Philosophy  of  the  period  anterior  to 
rise  of  Pietism,  82,  83.  Service  of 
speculative  philosophy  in  aid  of 
religion,  167. 

Philosophers  do  not  communicate 
directly  with  the  people,  471,  472. 

Pierson,  his  relation  to  Opzoomer, 
371.  His  opinions  contained  in  two 
works,  371,  372.  His  exposition 
of  the  "  IS)  ew  Theology,"  372.  He 
holds  that  reason  must  determine 
what  is  revelation,  373.  Speci- 
men of  Pierson's  style,  374. 

Pietism,  agencies  leading  to  rise  of, 
55.  Objection  brought  against 
Pietism,  85.  What  Pietism  pro- 
posed to  do,  85.  It  was  confound- 
ed with  mysticism,  88.  Pietism 
commenced  upon  the  principle 
that  the  Church  was  corrupt,  88. 
The  means  proposed  by  Pietism  to 
improve  the  Church.  88,  89.  Se- 
cret of  the  fall  of  Pietism.  102. 
Mistake  of  Lutheranism  in  failing 
to  adopt  it  in  the  Church,  102.  Re- 
lation of  Pietism  to  the  German 
Protestant  Church,  102. 

Pietists,  charged  with  literary  bar- 
renness, 101. 


INDEX. 


i\\9 


Positivism. the  work  of  Compte  alone, 
390. 

Powell,  Baden,  on  the  study  of  evi- 
dences of  Christianity,  in  Essays 
and  Reviews,  487.  His  opinions, 
487-48!L 

Preaching,  defective,  in  Germany  in 
seventeenth  century,  69,  70. 

Privy  Council  of  England,  498, 
note. 

Professors  and  students,  intimacy  be- 
tween German,  809. 

Prophecy,  opinion  of  German  Ra- 
tionalists concerning,  211-214. 

Protestantism,  concessions  of,  to  the 
civil  magistrate,  37. 

Protestant  Friends,  283. 

Pulpit  of  Holland,  low  state  of 
preaching  in  the,  334. 


RATIONALISM,  danger  uf  failing 
to  appreciate  magnirude  of,  1. 
Necessity  of  immediate  defence 
against  infidelity,  2.  Rationalism 
not  an  unmixed  evil  in  its  results, 
4.  The  term  Rationalism  not  of 
recent  origin,  6.  Rationalists  in 
England  in  1646  ;  6.  Rationalism 
defined  by  Riickert,  7,  note;  by 
"Wegscheider  in  Lnstitutiones  Dog- 
matic®, 8-11 ;  by  Staudlin,  11,  12 ; 
by  ProtVssor  Hahn,  12,  13;  by 
Hugh  James  Rose,  13-16;  by  A. 
McCaul,  16-19;  by  M.Saintes.  19- 
21  ;  by  Lecky,  22.  23.  Rational- 
ists acknowledge  justice  of  the  de- 
finitions of  their  opponents,  24. 
Several  kinds  of  Rationales,  24- 
26.  Peculiar  advantages  of  Ra- 
tionalism over  other  forms  of  Skep- 
ticism, 26.  Rationalists  do  not 
discard  the  Bible,  but  claim  to 
give  a  proper  interpretation,  27. 
Shrewdness  of  Rationalism  in  its 
initial  steps,  30.  Motives  of  the 
early  Rationalists,  31.  Rationalism 
measured  by  four  things,  32-35. 
Rationalism  acknowledges  no  hal- 
lowed ground,  33.  Spirit  of  Ra- 
tionalism, bitter,  34.  Complete- 
ness of  destructive  work  of  Ra- 
tionalism, 35.  The  term  Ration- 
alism came  into  use  in  early  part 
of  nineteenth  century,  239.  Ra- 
41 


tionalism,  injured  by  its  excessive 
demands.  255-256.  Rationalism 
assumed  a  revolutionary  and  atheis- 
tic form  after  the  publication  of 
Strauss'  Life  of  Jesus,  281.  Rise 
of  Rationalism  in  Holland,  333. 
Undercurrent  of  Rarionalism  in 
Dutch  Church,  extending  back  to 
Synod  of  Dort,  346.  Rationalism 
in  French  Protestant  Church,  391 
-409;  in  Switzerland,  432-£39 ;. 
in  England,  455.  Three  forms  of 
Rationalism  in  England,  455.  In- 
direct service  of  Rationalism,  579 
-586.  Philosophical  Rationalism 
in  England  commenced  wi  h  Cole- 
ridge, 455.  Literature  of  Rational- 
ism, 590-606,  Appendix. 

Rationalists  among  the  English  Jews, 
Roman  C.ttholics,  Quakers,  and 
Unitarians,  533. 

Rationalists,  German,  had  no  com- 
mon system,  198.  Reason  there- 
for, 198.  The  principal  parts  of 
their  system,  200-218.  Results  of 
their  opinions.  218,  219. 

Recordite  party  in  the  Low  Church, 
511. 

Reformation  endangered  by  contro- 
versies, 45. 

Reformed  Church,  purity  and  pro- 
gress of,  in  seventeenth  century, 
76. 

Reformers,  difference  between,  and 
Rationalists,  3 1 ,  32.  Faults  of  the 
immediate  successors  of  the  Re- 
formers, 37.  Disputes  of  the  Re- 
formers, 38. 

Regeneration,  Unitarian  opinion  of, 
551,  552. 

Reinhard  avowed  himself  in  favor 
of  subordination  of  reason  to  faith, 
239. 

Religion,  opinion  of  German  Ra- 
tional on,  199. 

Renan,  his  greatest  celebrity  due  to 
his  Life  of  Jesus,  403.  His  opin- 
ions, 403,  404.  Reception  of  his 
Life  of  Jesus,  405.  Results  of  that 
publication  declared  by  Ue  Pres- 
sense  to  be  beneficial,  406.  Litera- 
ture arising  from  Renan's  Life  of 
Jesus,  596-598,  Appendix. 

"  Reunion  of  Christian  Friends  ia 
Holland,"  result  of  revival  in  the 


620 


INDEX. 


Daich  church,  36  \.  Monthly  Jour- 
nal of  tlie  organization,  361. 

Roville,  his  exposition  of  the  so- 
called  Liberal  Theology,  394-396. 

Revival  in  the  Dutch  church,  358. 

Revue  de  Theologie,  organ  of  French 
Critical  School,  396.  Edited  by 
Scherer,  396. 

Roell,  Professor,  declared  the  neces- 
sity of  reason  for  a  proper  inter- 
pretation of  the  Scriptures,  348, 
349. 

Rohr,  his  Briefe  uber  den  Rational- 
ismus,  34.  Principles  contained 
therein,  238.  239. 

Rothe,  ethical  system,  300.  His  re- 
cent work  on  Dogmatic  Theology, 
300.  Principles  taught  therein, 
301-303. 

Rougemoir. his  opinions.  400,  401. 

Rousseau,  his  description  of  French 
skepticism  during  the  reign  of 
Louis  XV ;  1 18.  The  proposition 
which  he  sought  to  establish,  121. 
The  key  to  his  creed,  122.  His 
popularity  in  Germany,  186. 

Rupp,  Pastor,  attacked  the  Athana- 
sian  symbol,  284. 


^ABBATH,  neglect  of.  in  Germany, 

O  37. 

Schaff,  description  of  Neander's 
appearance,  253,  254.  Declares 
the  indirect  service  of  Rationalism, 
580,  582,  583. 

Schelling,  his  natural  philosophy, 
164.  His  opposite  and  parallel 
sciences,  164. 

Schenkel,  elevation  by  Baden  gov- 
ernment, 383.  His  late  skeptical 
book,  Picture  of  the  Character  of 
Jesus,  303.  Principles  taught 
therein,  304.  Clerical  protest 
against  his  continuance  in  authori- 
ty, 305. 

Coherer,  member  of  the  French 
Critical  School.  Departure  from 
orthodoxy,  39i>.  His  view  of  Pro- 
testantism, 397.  Opinion  of  the 
New  Testament,  397,  398.  The 
Bible,  according  to  his  exegesis, 
398,  399.  His  low  estimate  of 
Christ's  Miracles,  399,  400 


Schiller  at  Weimar,  178,  179.  His 
prayer  on  Sabbath  morning,  179, 
180  An  admirer  of  Paganism, 
181.  Embodies  the  Kantian  phi- 
losophy in  verse,  182. 

Schleiermacher, early  training  of, 224 
Residence  in  Berlin  as  chaplain 
224.  His  philosophy  derived  from 
Jacobi,  224.  Bis  Discourses,  225, 
226.  Purpose  of  that  work,  225, 
226.  Schleiermacher's  conception 
of  religion,  226,  227.  His  Mono- 
logues, 228,  229.  Bis  System  of 
Doctrines,  241.  Principles  taught 
therein,  241-243.  The  great  ser- 
vice of  that  work,  243,  244.  In 
formation  concerning  Sehleier- 
macher,  243,  note.  His  defect- 
ive view  of  the  Trinity,  244.  Gen 
eral  character  of  his  theology 
245,  246.     His  school,  256,  257. 

Scholasticism,  one  of  the  elements 
of  the  degeneracy  of  the  Dutch 
Church,  336. 

Fcholten,  founder  of  the  Leydec 
School,  368.  His  distinction  be- 
tween the  principles  and  dogma* 
of  a  church,  368.  His  view  of 
historical  criticism,  369.  Makes 
human  nature  the  witness  of  truth 
of  revelation,  369.  Defective  view 
of  sin,  and  denial  of  miracles,  37U. 

Schott,  contended  for  the  union  of 
Reason  and  Revelation,  241. 

Sehuurmann,  Anna  Maria,  took  part 
in  the  Cocceian  controversy,  341. 

Science,  necessity  of  a  proper  view 
of,  586,  587.  No  antagonism  be 
tween  Science  and  Revelation,  587. 

Scriptures,  study  of,  neglected  in 
Germany  in  seventeenth  century, 
68.  Opinion  of  German  Rational- 
ists concerning  credibility  of  Scrip- 
tures, 203-206.  The  Rationalists 
conscious  of  importance  of  the 
Scriptiire-i,  481. 

Secession  from  the  Church  of  Hol- 
land, 362.     Jts  failure,  363. 

Semler,  his  early  training,  128.  Dif 
ficulty  concerning  want  of  under- 
standing of  the  number  of  the  Bibli- 
cal books,  129.  His  celebrated  ao- 
commodation-theory,  130.  His  dis- 
tinction between  the  local  and 
temporary  contents   of  the  Scrip- 


INDEX. 


621 


SER 

tures,  130,  131.  His  moderate  affili- 
ation wi'h  tlie  English  Deists.  131. 
His  repudiation  of  the  French  Skep- 
tical School,  131.  His  opinion 
concerning  the  world's  independ- 
ence of  the  Bible,  132.  He  gained 
his  greatest  triumph  against  the 
history  and  doctrinal  authority  of 
\e  church.  132.  The  beauty  and 
jurity  of  his  private  life,  133,  13-4. 
His  domestic  life,  134.  Death  of 
his  daughter,  135,  136.  Sender's 
mental  detects.  136.  His  imitators, 
137.  Fatal  results  of  Sender's 
doctrines,  146.  147. 

Seriousness  and  Peace,  society  called, 
376. 

Shaftesbury,  Lord,  cultivated  the  ac- 
quaintance of  the  leaders  of  skepti- 
cism in  France  and  England,  115. 
His  violent  hostility  to  Christianity, 
115.     His  Characteristic*.  115. 

Sin,  Unitarian  'opinion  of,  548-550. 

Skepticism,  the  result  of  coldness, 
formalism,  and  controversy  in  the 
Church,  4.  Development  of  skep- 
ticism south  and  west  of  Germany, 
112,  113.  Skepticism  received  the 
support  of  the  educated  and  re- 
fined German  circles  during  latter 
part  of  the  eighteenth  century,  148. 
Historical  record  of  skepticism,  563. 

Skeptics,  spirit  of  kindness  toward. 
587,  588. 

Smith,  John  Pye.  his  statement  con- 
cerning the  inferior  character  of 
replies  to  the  English  Deists,  117. 

Speculative  Rationalism  in  Zurich, 
Periodicals  favoring,434.  Opinions 
of  the  Speculative  Rationalists 
concerning  the  Scriptures  and 
Christ,  435-437,  immortality,  437, 
438 ;  sin,  438  ;  faith.  438.  439. 

Spener,  Philip  Jacob,  his  testimony 
on  neglect  of  chddren,  63,  64.  His 
University  life,  and  pastoral  labors, 

89,  90.  His  labors  in  behalf  of 
children,  90.  The  Collegia  Pietatis. 

90,  91.  Spener's  Pin  Desideria.  91. 
nis  chddlike  nature.  91,  92.  His 
literary  activity,  92.  Bitterness  <>f 
ids  enemies  after  his  death.  92, 
93. 

Spinoza.  103,  281. 

Stanley,  Dean   of  Westminster-,   his 


THE 

works,  523.  Rationalistic  conces- 
sions in  his  Jewish  Church,  524. 
His  late  article  in  the  Westminster 
Review.  524,  525. 

Stevenson,  description  of  Fliedner's 
Deaconess  Institute.  317.  318.  Sy- 
nod of  Dort,  334. 

Stoddard.  Venerable,  did  not  believe 
in  excluding  unregenei  ate  persons 
from  the  Lord's  Mipper,  537. 

Strauss,  his  Life  of  Jesus  the  out- 
growth of  long-standing  doubt. 
29.  Strauss  a  Left-Hegelian,  258. 
Popular  reception  of  his  Life  of 
Jesus,  259.  Extraordinary  charac- 
ter of  the  contents  of  that  work,. 
259,  260.  Strauss  had  an  errone- 
ous view  of  history,  260.  He  con- 
tended that  Christ  was  a  mythical 
personage,  261-263.  Doctrines 
contained  in  the  Life  of  Jews,  263- 
270.  Replies  to  that  work,  273, 
274.  His  late  work.  Life  of  Jesus 
Popularly  Treated,  designed  for 
the  laity,  275.  Contents  of  that 
work,  276,  277.  Strauss'  System 
of  Doctrine,  an  embodiment  of 
Hegelian  philosophy.  281.  Re- 
jec  ion  from  professorship  in  Zu- 
rich, 432,  433. 

Success  dependent  on  strenuous  ef- 
fort, 577,  578. 

Supernaturalism.  This  term  came 
into  frequent  use  in  early  part  of 
nineteenth  century.  239. 

Switzerland,  decline  in  political  in- 
fluence, 425.  Low  state  of  Swiss 
Protestant  Church  when  Voltaire 
was  at  Ferney,  425.  426. 


TEMPLE,  author  of  Education  of 
the  World,  in  Essays  and  Peviewsy 
482.     His  opinions.'  482-485. 

Tendency,  history  of  a  mischiev- 
ous, best  means  of  resistance,  3. 

Theologians  in  early  part  of  seven- 
teenth century.  67. 

Theological  taste,  increase  of,  ow- 
ing to  the  propagation  of  Sender's 
destructive  criticism.  144. 

Theological  training  in  Geneva,  neg- 
lect of,  4:16.  M.  Bost's  testimony, 
426,  427.  Present  elevated  state 
of  instruction,  431,  432. 


622 


INDEX. 


THE 

Theology,  Dutch,  literalism  of,  345. 
Theology,  union  between,  and  phi- 
losophy, 35,  36.  The  influence  of 
theology  as  a  science,  in  Germany, 
146.  Improvement  in  contempo- 
raneous German  theology,  309, 
310. 

Thirty  Years'  War;  principles _ in- 
volved and  parties  participating, 
56.  Desperation  and  devastation 
of  Thirty  Years'  War,  57.  Neg- 
lect of  pastoral  work,  57.  Great 
losses  in  population  and  wealth. 
58.  Religious  effect,  60.  Neglect 
of  youth,  62.  Necessity  of  a  pop- 
ular reawakening  at  the  close  of 
Thirty  Years'  War,  80,  81. 

Tholuck,  reply  to  De  Wette's  novel, 
248.  Repiy  to  Strauss'  Life  of 
Jesus,  271.  View  of  inspiration, 
292.  Tholuck  cannot  be  estima- 
ted by  merely  stating  his  defini- 
tions, 292,  293.  He  cannot  be 
classified,  293.  His  various  writ- 
ings, 293.  Quotation  from  his 
work  on  Sin  and  Redemption, 
293-295. 

Thomasins,  an  eminent  jurist,  98. 
He  gave  his  influence  to  Pietism, 
99.  He  defended  the  Pietists  from 
the  stand-point  of  statesmanship, 
99.  Cultivated  the  German  spirit, 
and  delivered  lectures  in  the  Ger- 
man language,  99. 

Tilly,  his  cruelty  in  warfare,  58, 
59. 

Tindal.his  Christianity  as  Old  as  the 
World,  replies  to,  116. 

Tittmann  opposed  Rationalism,  239, 
240. 

Toland,  replies  to  his  Christianity 
not  Mysterious,  116. 

Tollner;  his  attempt  to  harmonize 
the  old  German  theology  with  the 
Wolffian  philosophy,  112.  His  point 
of  difference  from  Wolff,  112.  His 
twofold  conception  of  Scripture, 
112.  His  opinion  of  inspiration, 
201,  202. 

Tractarianism,  511-516. 

Tracts  for  the  Times,  516. 

Tubingen  School,  280. 

Tzschirner  contended  for  the  harmo- 
nization of  reason  and  revelation, 
240.     His  influence,  240. 


UHLICH,     Pastor,      founder     of 
Friends  of  Light,  283. 

Ullmaim,  reply  to  Strauss,  273.  His 
Essence  of  Christianity,  289.  Opin 
ions,  289. 

Union  of  German  Churches,  231, 
232.  Task  imposed  upon  the  new 
State  Church,  237. 

Unitarian  controversy  between  Uhan- 
ning  and  Worcester.  541. 

Unitarians,  their  indefinite  creed, 
544.  Their  general  opinions,  546- 
552.  National  convention  in  New 
York,  559,  560. 

Unitarianism,  opposed  to  orthodoxy, 
544,  545.  Table  showing  its  pres- 
ent state,  560,  note.  Literature  of 
Unitarianism,  607-609,  Appendix. 
Unitarian  Journals,  609,  Appendix. 

United  States,  Church  of,  534.  Sep- 
aration of  Church  and  State  by 
the  founders  of  the  republic,  534. 

Unity  of  Evangelical  Churches,  ne- 
cessary to  overcome  Rationalism, 
588,  589. 

Universalis  in  America,  560.  Creed 
of  the  Universalists,  561,  562. 
Table  showing  their  present  con- 
dition. 562,  563,  note.  Literature 
of  Universalism.  607,  609,  Appen- 
dix. Universaiist  Journals,  609, 
Appendix. 

Universities,  immorality  in  German, 
in  seventeenth  century,  75,  76. 


VAN  OOSTERZEE,  his  work  in 
reply  to  Renan's  Life  of  Jesus,  370. 
Quotation  from  it,  377.  Professor 
in  Utrecht,  376.  His  works,  376, 
377. 

Yaughan,  testimony  of,  concerning 
Schleiermacher's  Discourses,  225. 
226.     Opinion  on  Carlyle,  477. 

Venerable  Compagnie  of  Geneva, 
prohibited  ministerial  candidate? 
from  preaching  on  prominent 
evangelical  doctrines,  427. 

Vinet,  his  works,  and  system  of  the- 
ology, 429. 

Voltaire,  relations  of,  with  Rousseau, 
119.  Voltaire  in  England,  119. 
Favorable  reception  by  tho  En- 
glish court.  119,  120.  Reception 
-•it  the  court  of  Frederic  the  Groat. 


INDEX. 


323 


J20,  121.  Disagreement  between 
Voltaire  and  Frederic,  121.  Re- 
turn of  the  former  to  France,  121. 
Residence  in  Ferney,  121.  His 
destitution  of  religious  principles, 
121.  Popularity  in  Holland,  353. 
Cold  treatment  by  Boerhaave,  357. 
Flattered  by  the  Genevan  pastors, 
425 


WARE,  an  Anti-Trinitarian,  cho- 
sen professor  in  Harvard  Uni- 
versity, 540. 

Waterloo,  battle  of,  commencement 
of  a  new  era  in  the  religion  and 
politics  of  Europe,  356. 

Weimar,  celebrities  of,  169,  170. 

Weslev an  Missions  in  the  Channel 
Islands  and  France,  388,  389. 

Westminster  Review,  477,  478.  Its 
lament  over  present  elevated  posi- 
tion of  German  Protestantism,  479. 

Westphalia,  peace  of,  its  fruits,  59. 

Wetstein,  forerunner  of  Ernesti,  127. 

Wichern,  John  Henry,  address  before 
the  Church  Diet  at  its  hist  session, 
324.  His  Rough  House  near  Ham- 
burg. 324.  Results  of  training  at 
that  Institution,  325,  326. 

Williams,  Rowland,  one  of  the  wri- 
ters in  Essays  and  Reviews,  485. 
His  opinions,  485—487. 

Wilson,  H.  B.,  discusses  the  ques- 
tion of  the  National  Church  in 
Essays  and  Revieics,  489.  His 
opinions,  489-491. 

Wislicenus,  his  skeptical  work,  283. 

Wolff,  his  demonstrative  philosophy, 
106.      His  good    intentions,   104. 


His  description  of  his  mental  pro 
gress.  Iii4.  Division  of  his  philos 
ophy  into  theoretical  and  practi- 
cal departments,  105.  His  opinion 
of  what  a  revelation  should  con- 
tain, 105,  106.  He  aimed  to  im- 
press his  principles  upon  the  mas- 
ses, 106.  His  system  destructive 
to  Pietism,  107.  His  eventful  life, 
107,  108.  Excitement  produced 
by  public  discourse  on  Morals 
of  Confucius,  108.  His  deposition 
and  banishment,  108.  Recalled  by 
Frederic  the  Great,  108.  His  re- 
ception at  Halle,  108,  109.  The 
popular  reception  of  the  Wolffian 
system,  109.  Relation  of  Wolff's 
philosophy  to  German  theology  in 
eighteenth  century,  110.  The 
Wolffian  School,  111. 

Wolfenbiittel  Fragments,  149.  Their 
origin,  149,  150.  Principles  con- 
tained in  them,  150,  151.  Opposi- 
tion to  that  work,  151. 

Wolla<ton.  Lis  creed,  and  popularity 
of  his  works,  115. 


YEAR-BOOKS.   Halle,    an    organ 
of  Atheism,  282,  283. 
Young  Men's    Christian   Union    of 

New  York,  553-558. 
Youth,    multiplicity   of  publications 
for  German,  189,     Teachers  of  the 
young  became   Rationalists,    189, 
190. 


Z 


URICH,  *.';  e  present  seat  of  S*  >.. 
Rationalism,  432. 


i 


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